Hetalia High School Host Club
by GoneInASecond
Summary: Arthur Kirkland enrolls to a new high school known as Hetalia Academy, where some of the richest people in the country are enrolled in. As a commoner in a rich man's land, he sticks out like a sore thumb and is an outcast. Everything changes when he meets and joins The Host Club. Little does he know about the drama in this club and the drama happening right under his feet.
1. Chapter One

**AN: I'll try to keep this note brief. If you want to skip to the drama or you've already seen the anime/manga for OHSHC, skip to Part 2 of this chapter. Thanks!**

* * *

 **HHSHC, Chapter One.**

* * *

 **Chapter One, Part One: Welcome to Hetalia Academy**

 _"Only those with excellent social standing and those with filthy rich parents are lucky enough to spend their time here at the elite private school, Hetalia Academy."_

Today's the start of a new day. The mark of new beginnings and fresh starts, the time for rebirth and renewals. I mean, when you're having your first day at school with a bunch of rich people, it's best to stay optimistic, right?

As soon as I wolfed down my toast and said goodbye to my father, I'm ready to go. With my bookbag slung over my shoulder and my glasses resting on my nose, I'm ready to face the world.

I've never been happier.

Well, actually, that's a huge exaggeration.

You know what I mean.

The door swiftly opened, moving without a single creak. All the wind rushed in my face, ruffling up my hair even more. But I smile. When my hand leaves the doorknob, the door closes with a satisfying, audible click.

Outside seems more appealing than it normally does. The trees and grasses seem so much more vibrant and green, and the smell of flowers is much more pungent. The sky is also a pretty shade of light blue with the clouds as puffy as sheep's fleece but no bigger than small wisps. The sun hung high in the sky as it normally does, but the sunlight seems even more warm and inviting today.

The sidewalks are tepid and a dreary shade of gray, but it gives my stride a bit of an extra hop or skip every now and again. The other people who pass beside me on the pavement give me a nice smile and a greeting, and I can't help but smile back. Everyone looked like they were much more friendlier today.

After a long stroll around a few blocks I reached the long line of wrought iron fences connecting to the gates that marked the entrance to the entire campus. On the top of the gate is an ornate cornice bearing the school's crest. They pay attention to the small details, I guess.

Even though I didn't put any force in my action, when I pushed open the gates they swung open dramatically.

It was truly a strange sight indeed: Rather than just a neat arrangement of all the different grade schools, they were all grouped like a bunch of individual buildings that interconnected in a sort of large box shape. In the middle of the 'box' was a giant courtyard that most people considered a hangout of sorts and the main gateway to the other buildings. In the back housed the main building for the high school and the giant clock tower stood behind it. In the front of the box where the doors to the courtyard and the front yard were, there were also two extra buildings stuck to the edges of the 'box,' kind of like outstretched arms. Although there was five different divisions for every different school, I would only have to visit the high school.

Since the academy's color palette consisted of pinks and purples, the entire faculty were painted in those shades. The walls of the buildings were cream colored, accented with light pinks and rosy reds. The entire academy had rows of daily-washed windows that went across the entire edifice. The rooftops of the school were lilac-colored and a shade of lavender that shone almost like glittering jewels. Behind the high school there was a large clock tower, somewhat like the Big Ben but colored in the school's own colors.

In front of the school, there was a pathway made of old cobblestone that stretched to the large stone fountain in the middle of the front yard. The fountain had a statue that resembled a vase with many different flower designs and patterns carved in it. On both the left and right were arrays of stone raised flower beds that were circular with all sorts of roses of every different color and variety planted in them. The rows of roses had neat trimmed grass hedges surrounding it.

I am stunned by the beauty of the school grounds. Maybe it's just because I'm won over too easily, but, it didn't matter. Even as a person who most other students would consider me as "uneducated in the arts of architecture" or "a commoner who never had tastes for finer things," it's hard to deny the handiwork and craftsmanship of this entire place.

How do all these rich kids get used to this place? How am I ever going to get used to this place?

As I followed the stone pathway to the courtyard doors, I couldn't help but to look at some of the other high schoolers scattered around everywhere. I noticed that there was one pattern that they followed and I didn't. All the girls had a yellow bodice-fitted dresses with a white collar and a red ribbon tied around it. All the boys wore a light blue blaze accompanied with a navy blue tie and black dress pants. I was wearing an old olive green sweater vest and a white button up underneath with some patched brown pants.

I stuck out like a goddamn sore thumb.

Once I reached the doors, I didn't hesitate at all to get inside of the courtyard. Unfortunately, there were tenfold the amount of students here than the amount I saw outside. I knew they were all judging or making comments about my garments, but the only thing I could do was to ignore them. By the way they were whispering and snickering, I could tell I was a whispering campaign among them.

Once I blocked out the other undergraduates here I had the chance to examine and admire the courtyard for what it was worth. I could see why it was a plaza among the scholars here. It was much larger than I expected, almost about the size of the high school itself. It had a huge systems of gardens that grew many different varieties and species of plants and flowers. Each garden had a different color scheme; one had blues, purples, and blacks, while another one had oranges, whites, and yellows. Each new plot had a more eye-catching and extravagant display of greenery than the last. In the middle of the yard was a large water fountain that had various coins tossed into it. Along the sides of the courtyard were cloisters. If I looked closely enough I could see darkened faces within the walkway.

After examining and exploring the unroofed yard and walking a long distance, I finally reached the high school. The building loomed over me, casting a shadow on me. On the left of me was a small patch of cherry trees. I caught myself staring at a few stray cherry blossoms that danced in the air. The smell of them are so intoxicating I actually took a moment to stand still, close my eyes, and take in all the scent. It's sweet and floral, but with such a light undertone of honeysuckle.

And that's when it hits me: I'm actually here.

For one more time, my hand rested on the doorknob, and I opened the doors. Then, the foyer of the school greeted my eyes.

The foyer resembled a large and long hallway. Along the ceiling of the first floor were arches resting upon pillars that connected to the floor and the ceiling. On every other pillar was a wall lamp lit with candles. Further along the foyer was a grand chandelier made with silver and gold. The luster that reflected off of it looked like twinkling starlight. A little over to the left was a enormous staircase with iron railings and velvet on the stairs.

I'd love to explore the whole school, but I was running out of time. Right now, my priority is to find my first class. Then I could go wander around. Yeah, that sounds good.

If I recall correctly, I should go up the stairway and I'll be in the Third Floor Landing. There should be a long corridor right next to it. Then, I should take a left. Or was it a right?

I pulled out my crumpled up schedule from my pocket. Besides the actual useful information printed on it, it was also filled with incoherent scribbles and random doodles I'd written when I got it. As I read the first line one the paper I put it back in its respective place. Japanese History, first hour. Room A103, east campus.

I'll find it on my own, I'm confident of it.

* * *

 **Chapter One, Part Two: Color Me Interested**

After countless minutes of aimlessly wandering around the school, that's when I finally realized I had no idea what I was doing. I kept finding myself going around in a circle, in a dead end, in the wrong direction, you name it. Now that I took so long to get nothing done, all the other people found their classes. The hallways and corridors were completely empty.

I was stuck in this complete labyrinth and maze of a high school.

After I got tired of running around, I slowed my pace to a walk. My footsteps echoed off the walls, only reminding me how alone I was.

Atleast I could stare at the windows. I admired the garden that was outside. There was also a little pond nearby, with cherry blossoms resting on the top of the waters. If I looked closely, I could see the dewdrops in the grass sparkling.

I was so immersed in the view, I almost didn't feel the shivers that went down my spine. Suddenly, the room got much colder than it was before. If that wasn't enough, a cloud covered the sun, dimming the aisle.

Footsteps reverberated around the room. Footsteps that didn't belong to me.

I turned around, not knowing what I should expect.

It was a boy who had somewhat wavy and rippled black hair. He was the direct opposite of unkempt and untidy appearances; with his neatly kept and styled hair and his school uniform clean and ironed, you could tell he meant business. He had glasses pushed up to the bridge of his nose that seemed to gleam even if the light didn't catch the lenses. He also had a seemingly random strand of hair eroding from his hair that stuck out from the rest of his locks.

He seemed to be staring directly at me. When we made eye contact, he didn't back down and look away. Neither did I. We both examined eachother in silence without a single word being spoken. He cleared his throat.

"Do you need something?" His voice had a hard edge to it.

"Y-yes." I almost choked on my words. "Do you know where room A103 is?"

The look of caution and intrigue on his face was replaced by an understanding expression, maybe even with a hint of sympathy.

"I see. As a new student here, everything must be very confusing. Especially as a commoner."

I tried to ignore the fact that he called me a commoner.

"Allow me to escort you, Arthur. Follow me."

When he said those words, it reminded me how suspicious he seemed. How did he know my name? How did he know I was a 'commoner?' To sum it up, he didn't give a good vibe.

He turned around and walked the complete opposite direction I was walking in before. Oh, great. Looks like I was going the entirely wrong way before.

Once more, he cleared his throat.

"Are you coming or not?" I could hear how annoyed he was getting.

"Right, sorry." I ran to catch up with him.

Once we were side by side, I had the opportunity to talk to him. "So, uh, mind telling me who you are?"

"Does it matter?" He sighed. "I'm Roderich Edelstein. Second year."

"Doesn't it seem a bit unnecessary to state how old you are?" Judging by the look on Roderich's face, I knew I shouldn't have said anything at all.

"You're the one who asked." His glasses gleamed even though there was barely any light in the hallway.

At this point, I could care less if he got annoyed. I looked up at one of the clocks that was mounted against the wall. We had less than two minutes left. "Right, right. Do you mind speeding up a little? You're walking pretty slow." I smirked at how offended he looked.

"You're the one who asked for the help," he muttered under his breath. Regardless, he did follow my suggestion and fastened his walking speed.

As we walked in silence, I noticed that we passed an entrance to a gigantic library. Next to the entryway was a little sign with the words 'Library Room 4' printed on it. Even though I only had a few seconds to look at it, I could see all the students there browsing for books and looking around. There were so many lines of bookcases filled to the brim with books of all variety.

When we passed the library, we ended up back at the staircase. He walked up the flight of stairs and went to the top floor, where another long hallway was. Turns out I was on the wrong floor the whole time. Wow, is my sense of navigation really that bad?

After some more walking, I decided it was time to talk again. "Are we almost th-"

"Say, Arthur," he immediately interrupted, trying to shut me up. "Are you in any after-school activities?"

"No," I replied, raising an eyebrow. "Why would I need to be in one?"

"Well, the school requires each student to be in one extra-curricular activity. Did anyone tell you this?"

I shook my head.

"The rule applies to after-school clubs, too."

"Well, that's great," I said sarcastically.

He ignored my sarcasm and continued with his spiel. "I have a club I co-own with a friend. I think you'd like to join."

"We just met. How would you know what I like and don't like?"

"Trust me." He gave me a smile which wasn't genuine, but seemed more evil than anything else. "Meet me in the third music room after your classes are over."

"What if I can't find it? Would I have to come to you for help again?"

He rolled his eyes. "You'll find it. It's at the end of the Northern Hallway, top floor of the South Wing."

Then, without saying another word, he simply stopped walking and turned around, and then walked in the other direction. I was about to open my mouth to yell for him to come back until I realized I was right next to one of the classrooms. I looked at the room number, and sure enough, it was A103. I had arrived on time.

Once the first hour officially began, I was bored out of my mind. I knew I should've payed attention to the teacher, but I was so distracted by the events that happened. Why did that guy act so weirdly? What was this club he talked about?

Should I even go there after school? I feel like it would be a waste of my time. But, then again, he did lead me in the right place. I guess he expects me to be there, too. I owe him, since he helped me, right? Plus, he knows who I am. Would he just approach me tomorrow and ask the same thing?

Throughout the whole day, I was stuck between an internal conflict. All my classes were a bore and I didn't really pay attention throughout the whole day. It seems so weird that I worked so hard to get a scholarship for this school and now I didn't even care. I was so distraught over this one decision.

What's the worse thing that can even happen? Why are you making such a big deal out of this?

Maybe I should just go join his club so I can actually pay attention tomorrow.

Before I knew it, my final class had ended. All the students bombarded the exit while I was still packing all my things in my over-stuffed bookbag. After I said goodbye to my teacher, I left the room.

Well, looks like I'm going after all. Where did he say it was, again? I tried to remember the things he said from this morning.

"Northern Hallway, top floor on the South Wing."

I tried looking around the hallway to see where I was. When I couldn't find any signs around, I just ended up asking someone. Looks like I was already in the Northern Hallway.

At the end of the Northern Hallway was a door. It had a sign next to the entrance like most of the doors had, but I couldn't read it from here. Time to investigate.

When I reached the doors I was finally able to read the sign. In its fancy, neat letters it bore the words 'Music Room #3.' Looks like I'm at the right place. Turns out, it's right next to where my last class is. That's pretty convenient, almost too convenient.

I brought my ear up to the door to see if I could hear anything. To my surprise, I could hear the loud arguments coming from inside.

"I'm the leader of this club! Why can't I meet him?" Someone exasperatedly cried.

"Because you're an imbecile," Roderich said. "Keep it together alright? He's almost here.

"What about us?" Two people asked in unison. "We're not that bad, are we?"

"Just be quiet, okay? I'll be the one who formally meets with him. I can't have you idiots meddling with this delicate work."

I guess Roderich considers persuading me to join his club as 'delicate work.' I'm not sure whether I should be offended or thankful.

Let's just get this over with.

I clasped my hand over the brass doorknob and opened to doors to the room. I heard a strangled cry as I opened the door but I saw nobody inside except Roderich.

The music room was actually bigger than I expected, it looked like four rooms combined together to make a single one. The entire room was mostly colored in pinks and whites. It had panels of marble along the walls. There was also a shiny chandelier in the middle of the room made with copper. The wall facing the outside had pink stained glass windows with colonial grid.

There were many tables with teasets on them along with red cushioned couches, a suitable place for tea and conversation.

The whole setup was pretty odd.

Roderich was seated at a table that was behind the doors. The chair he sat in looked like an antique Queen Anne chair with a velvet cushion. The table set nearby was a Victorian console table. There was an empty chair at the other side of the table that I presumed was for me. On the table was a sheet of paper with text printed all over it.

"Take a seat." He pointed towards the empty chair.

I followed his order and sat down.

"As you might've guessed, this is where the club meets up every day and where most of the events happen," Roderich began.

I quickly skimmed the first line of the paper that was on the table.

 _'Ouran High School Host Club Rules and Regulations'_

"What's a.. Host Club?"

"I'm glad you asked," Roderich said with a smile. "Well, we call ourselves a host club because we consider ourselves 'hosts' for our guests."

"Guests...?" My voice trailed off.

"You see, every day we have our guests come in and we do fun activities."

"Activities such as...?"

"These activities vary. Sometimes they can be games, a form of entertainment, et cetera," Roderich finished, taking a pen out of his pocket. "Have you made up your mind? Will you join?" With the pen, he motioned towards the paper.

Hesitantly and slowly, I took the pen.

Should I join? Roderich's descriptions were extremely vague at best. The whole situation felt too awkward and formal. Something was going on here that I didn't like, but I couldn't tell.

I looked at the paper while twiddling the pen between my fingers. After glancing towards the bottom and seeing a place for my signature, I realized it was a contract.

Is it really that important to have a contract for just joining a club? Now this seemed really suspicious.

"I'll join." When I said these words, I expected him to give a reaction, but his face was as blank and unreadable as ever. "But on one condition. Let me meet the other members."

His face turned as pale as snow and his lips slightly parted in shock. I could tell how tense he was just by my single wish. He quickly regained himself and nodded.

"Of course. May I be excused for just a moment?" His voice was shaky and watery.

I nodded, and he took off. He ran to the back of the music room to where a large yellow curtain was. He pushed it back and went behind it. What the hell..? How didn't I see that curtain before?

I could see a few outlines of people behind the curtains. It looked like there were five other people in there besides Roderich.

There were hushed whispers that were actually very loud. I could hear them from all the way over here. All I could make out were a few affirmatives and a few whisper-shouts.

"Pardon me for interrupting," he said while emerging from the depths of the drapery. "Here they are."

The five other members also came out from behind the curtain. They lined up in an arch, all except for Roderich.

"Please come up closer to our guest," Roderich requested.

They followed his order, moving in a synonymous manner like robots.

"Here they are," Roderich said while clearing his throat. He pointed towards the one in the middle of the arch. "That's Francis Bonnefoy, second year."

Francis had curly hair that fell down the sides of his face and stopped at his shoulders. His hair was thick and luminous, and it was obvious that he styled it very often. When I stared into his eyes, it was hard to make out his light shades of blue in his iris' since it also had a violet hue.

Roderich pointed towards the two boys that stood next to Francis. "They're Matthew and Alfred F. Jones, first years."

The pair of twins looked exactly alike. They both were lean but a bit bulky, and both shared the same blue eyes. They also had the same shaggy, disheveled blonde hair and wore glasses. The two of them even had a wild strand of hair coming up from their hairline. The only difference between them was that one of their ahoges was curly, and the other one was straight.

Roderich then moved his hand to the boy that was next to Alfred. "He's Ludwig Beilschmidt, third year."

The first thing that stood out to me about him was how tall he was, and how muscular he was. Apart from being large and sinewy, he had slicked back blonde hair and blue eyes. Not a single hair was out of place. Not only did he look intimidating, it felt like he gave off an aura of scariness.

Roderich then directed his hand to the last boy left. "And that's Felicano Vargas, third year."

I was shocked that he was a third year. If anything, he looked like he was in grade school. He had had a pretty short height for a high schooler, as he almost went up to my chest. Digressing from the topic of his height, he also had brown hair and brown eyes that were a vibrant and light shade. Like most of the others, on the left side of his head he had a large curl. He also seemed very cheerful because he had a huge grin plastered on his face.

I walked up to Francis and he tried to avoid my gaze.

"Hello," I said.

He opened his mouth to say something, but then quickly closed it. He seemed was fixated towards something that was behind me. I turned around to see Roderich holding a finger up to his lips. He immediately whipped both his hands behind his back. He smiled innocently as if I didn't catch him shushing Francis.

"I've made up my mind," I announced, breaking the silence throughout the room. The members stared at me intently in anticipation for my answer. "I'll join."

Eyebrows got raised at me and mouths were gaping open, but there was still silence.

How bad can this 'host club' really be? It just seems like a normal club. It's better if I just join this host club now so I don't have to get dragged into some other club. I'm already here with the contract, so I might as well just do it.

I sat back down at the table and picked up the pen. I guess I'll quickly skim through the contract.

 _'In order to officially be a member of the Ouran Academy Host Club, you must be in agreement to the statements below. Failure to comply by these rules will result in you consequences._

 _1\. I understand that my membership as a host in this club is based on my own decision, and that working alongside my fellow hosts is mandatory._

 _2\. I acknowledge that I am a respectable member of this club along with the other boys, and I will contribute to all club activities that I am able to participate in._

 _3\. I understand that this club, being an extra-curricular activity for Ouran Academy is purely for preferred club interests and will not expect to be paid, pampered, or treated differently by my teachers or this school in any way._

 _4\. I understand that I may not join any other official after-school clubs at Ouran Academy whilst being in the Host Club. This will be the rule unless Francis Bonnefoy officially states otherwise.'_

When I finished reading this rule, I realized there was still a block of long text that droned on and on about all sorts of different boring stuff. Whatever. I'll just sign the damned thing already, there's no point in wasting any more time. I bet it's all talking about the same stuff, anyway.

I picked up the pen in a dramatic fashion and with a swoop of the arm I wrote my signature in perfect cursive.

All at once all the others shared a collective sigh of relief. Roderich smiled, but instead of a real smile it seemed more malicious in nature.

"I'll take the contract." He held out his hand.

I gave him it, and he rolled it up into a scroll. "Francis, take this for safekeeping." Roderich handed it to him. Francis nodded and left the music room, disappearing down the hall. "That's all you need to do for now, Alice. You can come back tomorrow to officially start engaging in the club."

And with that, they dismissed me. The rest of the host club turned their backs to me and started putting away the chairs and the table Roderich and I were sitting at.

As soon as I left, I was able to think about what just happened. On my first day of school here I joined this weird superficial club with a bunch of weird boys. Do you they even know I'm not a boy? Is it even worth it to keep up this act? I mean, the rest of them are boys so maybe I should just keep posing as one. It just seems so selfish of me to pretend to be a boy for this club. At first I didn't care about my appearances or my gender, but it seems like it matters now.

Whatever.

I'll just have to see what happens tomorrow.

* * *

 **Chapter One, Part Three: What Happened to that Glamorous Club?!**

Today was the same monotonous and tedious routine as yesterday. I went to my first class, followed by my second class, and then so on and so forth. I knew everything was going to be the same, except for one thing.

The Host Club.

The Host Club was the only wild card in my perfect and organized schedule. The only thing that was unexpected, crazy, and unpredictable. Not only was the club remarkable, but the members of the club were even weirder.

I found that this was the only way I could describe the Host Club in its true justice.

As the final bell of the day rung in my final class, I knew what impending doom lay ahead of me. I'd have to go back to that dreaded music room.

I packed up all my materials up in my bookbag and left the room. When I walked down the seemingly endless hallway that led to the club room, I felt my heart speeding up. My body shivered up and down and all round even though the hallway wasn't cold at all.

Would it be possible to not even go at all? I was hoping that'd be the case, but Roderich would just track me down. I guess that would probably violate a few club rules as well.

I sighed as I neared the end of the Northern Hallway. The doors to the music room were nearly in my reach. In all its beauty, it stood there, like a solitaire solider. I knew what were behind those closed doors. In retrospect, I think I regret joining. Maybe I should just go join the ski club or something.

My fingers closed around the brass doorknob, and I pushed open the doors with all my might.

I was expecting a lot of things, but I didn't expect this: through the crack of the opened door was a blinding light, shimmering and shining like purest of diamonds. Rose petals flew onto my face, landed in my hair, and littered the ground.

When the piercing light faded, I stepped inside. As soon as I walked in, the doors behind me slammed shut, and a final image was clear.

The six boys were clustered in an arc with roses in their hands. Except for Francis, of course. He had his rose clamped in his mouth.

"Welcome," they said in unison.

"Oh, nevermind," Alfred sighed, looking disappointed.

"It's just Arthur," Matthew groaned, finishing Alfred's sentence.

"Regardless, we should welcome any and all visitors we have," Ludwig said, holding a finger up to further prove his point.

"My, my! This is my wonderful little apprentice, isn't it?" Francis cooed, walking towards me. "I love new additions towards our family!"

"Your apprentice? I thought I made it clear that he was going to me mine," Roderich said, narrowing his eyes.

"Family?" I snorted. "You see them as your family?!"

"Of course!" Francis explained. "I'm the big brother, Roderich's the big sister, the twins are the little brothers, and Feliciano and Ludwig are the neighbors! I think you'd fit in perfectly as my little brother!"

"Forget about it. I don't want to be apart of this weird family, I interrupted, sticking my head up in a cocky fashion. "I'm better off on my own. I joined this club purely out of convenience."

Francis ignored my refusal and crouched down so we saw eachother directly eye-to-eye.

He poked my nose.

"You're so cute!" Francis cried.

I tried to open my mouth to say something, but I couldn't think of anything to say. I was speechless. For a moment, everyone was silent. It seemed like we were all astonished by Francis' audacity.

"I'm sorry. I can't do this." I pushed Francis away from me and he tumbled backwards, looking stunned. "I'm leaving. I can't stand to be with this idiot."

I turned around and tried to pry the doors back open. Just when I was about to finish my goal, I got swept away by a blur of movement.

"Don't leave, Arthur! We need money for gelato!" Feliciano pleaded, wrapping me in his tight yet small embrace. He spun me around in circles which got me discombobulated.

I wrenched him off me and backed away until my back hit the doors. "Money..? Wha?" I was already getting dizzy, and it wasn't from the spinning. "W-what are you, a bunch of male prostitutes?!" I spat with disgust. "Is that what you mean by entertaining guests?!"

"Prostitution?" The twins said together as if they were offended. Both of them raised a eyebrow. "We don't uphold that level of debauchery."

"Nonsense!" Francis yelled. Out of nowhere, he came up next to me and planted his arm around my shoulder. "We are a host club! I'll explain it to you clearly;" He put a hand on his chest. "We entertain guests by smothering them in compliments and with compassionate flirting. That is what our club is all about."

My mouth gaped open. "Compliments..? Flirting..?" I needed to physically shake myself to fully understand everything. "I quit! Resign me! I can't bear to spend another minute in this damned club!"

"Sorry," Roderich replied sinisterly. He held up the contract. "I understand that I will remain in the host club until it officially disbands. This will be the rule unless Francis Bonnefoy states otherwise."

"W-what?!" I stuttered, collapsing onto Francis' shoulder. "Where the hell did it say that in the contract?!"

"It was in the fine print." Roderich grinned a horrible, crooked smile. He rolled the contract up.

"No... No..." The words slipped from my mouth as a stressed groan.

"Yay! Arthur's staying!" Feliciano was now sitting at a table eating cake and drinking tea. A few specks of crumbs were around his lips.

Today was only the second day at school here, and I was already having one of the worst days of my life.

Francis turned to me and gave me a long look. He slightly cocked his head, eyeing me up and down.

"Let's try... This." He took off my glasses.

My vision turned into a blurred cesspool of random colors. I could no longer see the clear outline of objects, instead I saw fuzzy edges.

I tried locating which hand Francis had my glasses in. Did his complexion turn two shades pinker?

"Give those back. I can't see." I tried snatching them back but Francis was good at keeping it out of my reach.

"If he's going to be a host..." He took a sudden dramatic pause. "We have to make him look the part. Alfred, Matthew, get him a proper wardrobe. Also, do something about those eyebrows. Ludwig, get him contacts. Roderich, get an extra school uniform for him. I'll trim his hair up to my liking."

"What about me?" Feliciano asked.

"You can just eat cake and sit pretty," Francis concluded.

Feliciano looked slightly upset, but soothed his discomfort by stuffing more cake in his mouth.

"Now, now, fellas. I think this is all a tad bit unnecessary. What do you think?" I tried to persuade them in dropping the idea, but it was no use. The twins chucked under their breath.

"Nice try," Alfred began.

"You're not going anywhere," Matthew finished.

They grabbed me by both arms and dragged me to the doors at an unbelievable rate. I struggled against their grasp but it was no use. Their grip was as strong as steel.

As we left the room, I'm sure everyone in the school could've heard my screams and my curses.

* * *

 **Chapter One, Part Four: Looks Like I'm Already Better**

"P-please stop," I panted, sweat rolling down my face. I was in a world of hurt, my entire face and body ached.

"Y'know, if you just stood still, the pain would be easier to bear," Alfred suggested between gritted teeth.

"It's really not that bad, is it?" Matthew asked, trying to restrain me from strangling Alfred.

"It.. It hurts!" I yelped. My eyes actually watered a bit from the pain and my nostrils started to flare.

"We've been going at this thing and we haven't gotten a single thing done. I think we should just give up," Matthew proposed, slightly lifting his shoulders.

"Yeah, you're right." Alfred put down the tweezers. "We've tried plucking his eyebrows for like a hour. All these hairs are glued down to his face, or something." The twins turned their heads to look at me.

"I don't pay much attention to my appearance," I simply said.

"Whatever, let's just keep the eyebrows," Matthew sighed.

"Francis won't be too mad, hopefully. The real thing we have to worry about is finding him some clothes he can wear." Alfred turned to the old armoire in the corner of the room.

They dug through the closet, looking for suitable shirts, pants, accessories, etc. It was a while before they found anything nice-looking. After I tried it on and it looked nice, the twins and I had a solid rhythm of finding clothes and trying them on. Before we knew it, we had a large pile of clothes.

"Hey, Arthur," Alfred purred, a sly smirk growing on his face.

"I think this would suit you!" Matthew snickered under his breath.

Alfred pulled out a dress from the wardrobe. It was lavender, but had small little pink ribbons around the waistline. I couldn't ignore the ruffles and frills on the hems of the dress. It wasn't a particularly flattering outfit, but it wasn't too bad.

"Oh Matthew," Alfred said in a high, airy voice. "Anything would look good on Arthur!" He pushed the costume towards my chest.

"Of course," Matthew snorted, enjoying the act. "Arthur just has that flair, don't you think?"

A blush was painted on my cheeks. "Yeah, yeah, right. Whatever." I threw the dress aside and stared back at the twins.

Surprisingly, they were focused on me. Examining me.

"Look, let's just get back. We have everything, okay?" I tried to direct their attention away from me.

They nodded slowly and unsurely, with eyes narrowed. I raised an eyebrow and they mirrored my action.

Matthew whispered something in Alfred's ear, and Alfred whispered something in Matthew's ear. They both chortled in unison.

"Yeah, yeah, let's go," Alfred said while chucking inbetween. He stacked the pile of new clothes on his arms.

When we got back to the music room, everyone looked up at me with interest. I could feel their gazes on me as I walked towards Francis.

"What did I say about the eyebrows?" Francis looked disappointed.

"Sorry, boss. No matter how hard we tried, we couldn't get rid of them," the twins explained.

"Remember, don't call me 'boss.' Call me 'King.' That goes for you too, Arthur." Francis gave us a smile sweeter than honey. "Ludwig, do you have the contacts?"

Ludwig nodded. He held the small bag containing all the supplies needed.

"Do you need help getting them in?" Francis asked.

"Look, I've worn contacts before. It just happens that I forgot my contacts back in England. I'll go put them in." I took the bag from Ludwig and left the music room to go to the bathroom. When I finally got them in, I returned to the club.

"Oh, Arthur, I'm so glad I can see you turn into a lovely host! It reminds me of the transformation between the caterpillar to the butterfly. Once, you were a lowly caterpillar, a green and slimy worm. Then, the weaving of time transforms you into a beautiful winged beast."

"Okay. Just give me my uniform." I took the neatly folded clothes from Austria and started to walk towards the changing room. "Well, I'll be off now."

"Do you need help getting dressed in it?" The twins asked while grinning.

"No, thank you!" I shouted back at them as I shoved the curtain back, concealing myself.

Once I wore my new uniform, I stepped back into the main room. Feliciano gawked at me with bright eyes.

"Wow, Arthur's so cute!" He cried.

Before I knew it, he had me in his infamous hug like the one he had me in before. He spun me around in circles until I was dizzy. Right before we were about to stop, he rested his head on my upper midriff, his nose going straight in-between his chest. He then immediately let go.

I was almost too dizzy to realize the confused look on his face.

"That's enough, Feliciano." Francis grabbed my by the arm and guided me towards one of the corners of the room. "It's time for me to give you a haircut."

"Why couldn't you just get a professional?" I asked as he sat me down in a chair with a mirror facing it.

"You're looking at a professional right now." He winked. He set a black sheet over my shoulders as he took out scissors.

"Hey, since when did this room have a place for someone to have their hair cut?"

"There are a lot of things in this room you don't notice," he simply said.

"How does that logic make any sense?!"

"Shhh." He put a finger to my lips. "Just let me cut your hair."

As I read a magazine, he cut away at my hair. I wasn't particularly paying attention to how he was cutting it, since I was so immersed in the tabloid.

"There, how do you like that?"

I took my eyes off the magazine and stared at myself in the mirror. I had one of the most ugliest haircuts I'd ever seen.

"This.. This is just a shorter version of your hair!"

"It is!" He chirped. "The question still stands. Do you like it?"

"To put it simply, there's no way in hell I'd ever like this... abomination!" I frantically tried to ruffle up my hair to let it return to its natural state.

He sighed. "I knew you weren't going to like it, but I didn't know your hatred was going to be this extreme."

"What I wanted was my original haircut but in trimmed. I thought you knew this!" I exasperatedly explained.

"Fine," he huffed.

I switched to reading a newspaper and he kept cutting my hair. I had to occasionally look up to see what he was doing to make sure he was following my request.

"It's done. Are you happy now?"

I looked up from the newspaper and stared at my new haircut. "Tis' satisfactory. As a matter of fact, I am happy."

He sighed. "Go back to the rest of the members and I'll clean this up."

When I walked up to everyone else, they stared at me in awe.

"This'll do," Roderich said with a smirk.

"He's gonna be a heartbreaker," Alfred mockingly said. Matthew snickered.

"Arthur! Arthur! Let's have cake to celebrate!" Feliciano cheerfully said.

"Cake? No thanks, I'll pa-"

Everyone gave me a cautious look.

I sighed. "Do I really have to eat his cake?"

"It's better if you eat it," Ludwig said. "If Feliciano doesn't get what he wants, he gets fussy."

"Fine."

"Yay! Arthur's eating cake with me!" Feliciano grabbed me and sat me down at a table with two chairs. I sat in one of the chairs while he sat in another.

He took out a large cake that was covered in a glossy vanilla frosting topped off with strawberries. He put a slice on my plate, and then put a slice on his. He ate his cake ravenously while I ate my cake in small, dainty portions. I even poured myself a small cup of tea and sipped it slowly.

Hey, I figured that if I was going to eat cake and drink tea, I might as well do it in a dignified way and with manners.

When we finished our desserts, we hopped off our stools and walked up to where the rest of the group was. For whatever reason, I kept catching Ludwig looking at me in a weird way. Once Francis came back, he looked me up and down and nodded in approval.

"He looks good enough to be a host, but he needs a host personality." Francis patted my head in a friendly way.

"Host personality...?" My voice trailed off.

"You see, every girl has their own desires. That's why every host has a different host personality to pander to every type of wants and needs!"

First, Francis pointed to Roderich. "He's the calm, and collected type."

Next, he pointed to Ludwig. "The silent, strong, and efficient character."

Then, he pointed to Feliciano. "The cheerful, childish, lolita-boy type."

Finally, he pointed to the twins. "The mischievous, up-to-no-good type."

He then gestured towards himself. "What am I, you may ask? Well, I'll give a answer; I am the king of this host club. The romantic and the charmer!"

"More like a hopeless romantic," I uttered under my breath.

He ignored my remark. "So, what are you, then? Any ideas?"

"Well, he hasn't shown any remarkable character traits. He isn't stranger, and he isn't boring. He's not shy, but he's not loud. He's just.. A nobody." Roderich's glasses gleamed.

"Excuse me? I'm full of interesting traits and personalities!" I argued.

"Well, for one, he hates Francis," Matthew said. "We can start with that."

"Who doesn't hate Francis?" Ludwig brought up.

Everyone nodded while Francis looked offended.

"Well, you're from England, right? We could always go by English stereotypes," Roderich offered.

"But English people are kind and nice! They're quirky and gentlemanly! Arthur isn't anything like that!" Feliciano cried.

"What?! Are you saying that I'm not-"

"You're right," Francis said, agreeing with Feliciano. "If anything, Arthur is the complete opposite of that stereotype!"

"Y-you're kidding me, right?"

"Ooh! Ooh! I know! The rude, cynical type!" Alfred suggested.

I had to physically restrain myself from strangling him. "Alfred, you son of a-"

"Can we make Arthur the 'delinquent' type?" Francis piped up.

"That works! Arthur does seem rebellious!" Feliciano giggled.

I sighed. "I guess it's official. Everyone thinks I'm an asshole," I said sarcastically.

"You are," Alfred said nonchalantly.

I shot him a dirty look.

"Well, it may be true that Arthur is all of these things, but it won't attract any customers. I say the best course of action is what Francis suggested," Roderich said.

"Let's try it out! You can test your skills in about five minutes when the girls come around." Francis gave me a wide-eyed grin.

I groaned.

"If you don't do well, we'll change the contract so I get to decide when you leave this club," Roderich said.

"No pressure, or anything." The twins smiled at me.

"Don't worry! If you put your heart and mind to it, I'm sure you can do it!" Feliciano chirped.

Ludwig stayed silent.

"Thanks," I muttered. I didn't put too much appreciation in my voice, but I meant it.

The next few minutes were agony for me, but not for the host club. It was mostly me staring at the clock, waiting for open business hours.

"We've got two minutes left. Places everyone!" Francis announced.

Before I knew it, the whole room became pristine right before my very eyes. The host club had already taken a dramatic pose in front of the door, ready to welcome the girls. Since they didn't tell me where to go, I awkwardly stood behind Ludwig and struck a smile that strained my face.

The doors opened before I could barely comprehend what was happening. A crowd of girls swam into the room and the hosts took their seats in their respective chairs. The crowd of girls separated and sat next to their hosts and conversations began. The whole room was erupting in a noisy chatter and I was amidst the middle of it standing there. Luckily, Francis took a hint and left his clients for a few short moments and directed me to a little table of my own for me and the clients I would have. I sat down nervously tapping my foot. Before I knew it, three girls came over, looking slightly excited to have a host all to themselves. I don't know how, but Francis convinced them to come over.

"How do you do?" One of the girls said with a smile. "My name's Lily, and you are?"

I turned my chin up and scoffed. "The name's Arthur. Arthur Kirkland. I'm doing fine." I let the harsh expression on my face soften. "But, when you girls came here, my day got a lot better."

The girls all blushed and giggled, swooning over me.

"I never expected a commoner to be so charming!" Another girl piped in.

"I never would've thought that someone could be as beautiful as you are," I responded, shying my eyes away from her gaze to appear bashful. "Has anyone told you that you're as beautiful as a maiden?"

"You're so adorable!" The girls cried in unison.

"D-don't call me adorable!" I said, a blush painted over my cheeks. I tried to look shy and cute. When she wasn't expecting it, I cupped my hands around Lily's face and stared straight into her eyes. "Call me handsome." A devilish smirk grew across my face.

Lily's face instantly turned red as she was completely won over by me. More and more girls came over when they saw my display of flattery. In only a matter of minutes, I had a small crowd of girls surrounding me.

As I kept entertaining my crowd I noticed that in the corner of my eye Francis was watching me. He was observing me, picking up every little thing that I had said. He made a "come over here" gesture.

Once I came over, he greeted me with a smile.

"You're doing great, Arthur. Keep it up, and you might even do better than me."

"Thanks, Francis. Is that all you needed to say?"

"Yeah. You can go back to your clients now." Francis turned back to his girls.

When I was about to leave, I heard a voice speaking up.

"Say, Francis, who's this?" One of his clients asked.

"It's just Arthur. Pay no attention to him," Francis said. "He's a new host."

"Let her pay attention to me all she wants." I smirked. "I don't want to tell such a pretty girl what she can and can't do."

The girl giggled and Francis looked annoyed.

"To be fair, you aren't too bad yourself, Arthur," she flirted back.

The girl had curly orange hair that was messy and unkempt. Her ginger locks rested on her shoulders with a few wild strands of hair falling on her face. Her eyes were a shade of green that reminded me of emeralds and her lips had coral pink lipstick on them. She was tall and slim, petite and lean.

"What do you think you're doing?" Francis whispered to me, trying to make sure no one else could hear.

"I'm doing my job. Entertaining beautiful girls," I cooly replied. His clients laughed at my response.

"That's enough," Francis reiterated. "You can go back to your clients."

"If he's going, we're going, too," one of the girls said. "As far as we're concerned, we are his clients."

Francis was completely stunned. I was almost giddy with happiness. I relished his defeat and my victory.

When I walked back to my table with my new customers, I couldn't help but to look in Francis' direction and savor the look on his face. With all the new clients I had, business was a breeze. My afternoon had flew by without me realizing it. Once everyone had left, Francis was enraged.

"What was that?!" Francis yelled.

"You told me to try out my host personality, so I did!" I argued back.

"Not like that!" Francis cried out exasperatedly. "You weren't supposed to steal my clients!"

"You never said I couldn't! And it's not like I had a gun against their heads! They came to me on their own free will!"

I grabbed his collar and he grabbed me by the edges of my blazer. He pulled me closer to him and I did the same thing.

"Keep it up, and I might be even better than you, huh?" I said, imitating the way Francis had said it before. "Looks like I already am!"

I smiled and he frowned.

"Would you two please stop bickering?" Roderich pulled us apart. "Look, just apologize to each other or whatever and make up. Arthur's still a rookie, so you don't have to worry about your king status being lost."

"He doesn't have to worry about his king status _yet_ ," I muttered.

He held out his hand and I took it. We shook hands sheepishly in order to appease Roderich.

"Sorry," I muttered.

"Sorry," he muttered back.

"Are you happy now?" I asked, turning to look at Roderich.

He nodded.

"Okay. Can I go home now? I can't stand to be next to Francis for another minute!"

"You can't stand be to next to me? I can't stand to be next to you!" Francis sighed.

"Yes, you can go home now. Do you still want your old clothes back?" Roderich held out another small bag.

"Yes, please." I took the bag from his hands. "I'll go change into my old clothes again, and then I'll be on my way."

I made my way to the changing room and quickly stripped down to my undergarments. I set the uniform aside and picked up the bag. When I peeked into the bag, I only saw something yellow.

What the hell?

I plopped the contents of the bag on the ground and picked it up to get a full image of what it was.

It took me a moment to realize what it was.

It was the girl's uniform. The yellow dress.

How did Roderich know? Was this all a mix up? Did he intend to give me my old clothes and instead gave me this?

I knew that a mix-up wasn't the case. Roderich definitely knew. Should I be worried? How long did he know this? Well, he didn't say anything to me, so that probably means it's not a big deal. Does he expect me to walk out in this get-up? It'd look weird if I just came out with my regular uniform on when I said I was going to change my outfit.

"Arthur, I brought your glasses too, just in cause you need them."

I was snapped out of my thoughts, and the only tangible course-of-action I could process was to stop Francis from coming in here. I heard his footsteps coming towards my way, and before I knew it, he was right behind the curtain.

My mouth opened to say something, but it was already too late.

He unveiled the curtains and saw me with only my corset and my underwear on. I could feel my face heating up uncontrollably. We held eye contact for a few seconds. His face was blank and expressionless, and mine was painted in utter horror. I scrambled for words to say, but I couldn't find any. To my dismay, I said the first thing that popped up in my head without processing it.

"Please, get out."

My voice was shaky and raspy. I gave a nervous smile and I could feel my cheeks twitching.

He let go of the curtains, and we were separated. Once I put on the dress, I stepped out of the changing room and I was met with a red-faced Francis and the rest of the host club.

"Arthur.. you're a.. girl...?"

I wanted to say something to defuse the awkwardness of the situation, but I couldn't find the words. I just stood in silence, meekly nodding.

"Francis, are you kidding me?" Roderich chuckled. "You didn't notice? Everyone else did."

I took out my ID card from my bookbag and gave it to Francis. The picture showed me in girly pigtails that were held up with little hairpins and bows. I still had my old glasses, but I had much thinner eyebrows.

"Your real name is Alice?!" He yelped. He gave the card back to me and tangled his fingers into his hair in distress.

"Look, I just think that gender shouldn't be what defines you. I prefer to be myself with my personality instead of my sex and my appearance. Plus, everyone else in this club was a guy. I just thought it would complicate things if I told everyone. Especially when I found out this club was for wooing girls."

"I wish Francis stayed oblivious," the twins sighed together.

Francis tried to conceal the blush on his face with his hands, but the pinkness seeped to his entire face. He was a sputtering and stuttering mess.

"Well, isn't this the beginning of something more than just friendship?" Roderich muttered under his breath while smirking. "Let's go, everyone. We have more important matters to discuss than Alice's gender."

We all left the room, except for Francis. He was still there, blushing profoundly.


	2. Chapter Two

**Chapter Two, Part One: I Invented Gentlemanliness!**

 **AN: If you want to skip most of the tedious training, go to Part Two.**

* * *

"Bye, Arthur! I really enjoyed my time with you." My client smiled, her cheeks slightly rosy.

"Goodbye! The time I shared with you was truly something special." I returned a smile, and her cheeks turned from pink to red.

She sat up, and then left the music room.

Business hours were hectic, but I was getting used to the whole swing of things. I had an endless stream of appointments and conversations, but I enjoyed each one of them. I had a steady amount of clients and customers to keep happy, and it was only my second day of hosting. It's kind of relieving to know that I've been doing so well. I don't even want to imagine the lectures Roderich would give me if I wasn't.

I grabbed the clipboard and scanned the list of appointments I had. Turns out, there's only one more appointment I have. It's with a girl named Erin. Should be a breeze finishing up this last one, right?

I sat in my salon chair and took a moment to look around the room. Francis was in his usual spot, chatting away with girls. Roderich had his respective spot in the corner, where he was formally seated with his customers. Not surprisingly, he had his laptop close to him. Alfred and Matthew were at the middle of the room, close to where I was. They were hugging each-other while the girls ogled over their twincest trope. Feliciano was sitting on top of Ludwig's shoulders in their normal spot near the edge of the room. The girls seemed to love how cute Feliciano was and how handsome Ludwig was.

When I was examining the room, I almost didn't see the girl that was standing next to the chair. She cleared her throat to clarify that she was there.

"I'm here for my appointment," she said.

Once she sat down in the chair across from mine, I finally got a good look at her face. She was the ginger from yesterday when me and Francis fought.

"Hello, doll-face." I grabbed her chin and moved her face so we saw eachother eye-to-eye. "How are you today?"

She smirked and rolled her eyes. "Doll-face? Haven't heard that one before."

"It's called creativity, sweetie." I mirrored her smirk and tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear.

"I'm fine, thanks. Or, as you like to say it, when you came here, my day got a lot better," she said while imitating my voice.

"You like to pay attention to me, don't you?" I leaned back in my chair.

"I don't think I could ever take my eyes off you," she said sarcastically.

"Boy, aren't you sweet?" I chuckled.

Well, maybe there was some truth in her words. I kept catching her examining me closely, almost too closely. She didn't acknowledge this, though.

"Look, Arthur," she said, resting both her hands on my shoulders. "You don't need to keep up this whole 'host' act with me." She leaned in closer to me and hovered her lips close to my ear. Her voice became as quiet as a whisper. "I know your secret."

When she pulled away, I raised an eyebrow.

"Don't play dumb with me," she sighed. "It's obvious, okay?" She quickly looked around to make sure no one was around us. "It's obvious that you're not a boy. I knew it the first moment I laid my eyes on you."

Well, I figured it was only a matter of time before people figured out. I didn't know someone was going to figure it out the first day I was doing what I was doing.

"Yeah, you're right. My only question is if you knew I was a girl, why did you still play along with my flirting yesterday?"

For one of the first times, I saw her blush.

"At this point, I can't tell if you're doing your job as a host or if you genuinely like me." She grinned and the blush quickly disappeared off her face.

"It's the latter, trust me."

Once again, she rolled her eyes.

That's when I realized that all around us, nobody was talking except us. The room was completely silent. When I looked around, there was nobody in here except me, my client, and the rest of the host club. They were listening to our conversation this whole time.

When I noticed them, they walked up to me and Erin.

"Well, Alice, she knows your secret." Roderich sighed.

"You bet your ass I know," Erin said with pride.

"What should we do about it?" Francis asked, giving her a suspicious glance.

"Don't worry your pretty little faces. I won't tell anyone. There's nothing for me to gain even if I did tell someone." She gave us an innocent smile.

"Y'know, Roderich, in a lot of ways she's kind of like you," I pointed out.

"Whatever," Erin said. "I'll be on my way now."

And with that, she left the room without another word.

"Glad that's over with," Matthew said.

"Now that's she's gone, we have more important matters to discuss," Roderich announced. "Starting with Alice's training. Normally, we wouldn't initiate the training sessions this early. Because of the party, we'll have to have it early."

Everyone directed their gaze towards me.

"What training?" I asked. "And what party?"

"The training everyone has to take part of in order to be a proper host," Roderich explained. "And the party is to welcome you in our host club. Consider it as a praise for your good work yesterday."

"Who says I'm not a proper host? I invented gentlemanliness! Besides, you said it yourself, I did good yesterday."

"Sure, your performance was good, but a proper host knows everything beyond flirting and flattery. Who else thinks she needs the training?"

"I do," Francis piped up.

"She is a little rusty," the twins said.

"A little training never hurt anyone!" Feliciano brought up.

Ludwig shrugged. "I'm neutral."

"Then it's settled." Roderich cocked his head at me. "Your real training will begin tomorrow, but today you'll go through the training introduction. I'll teach you everything you need to know."

"You're teaching her?!" Francis gasped. "I thought I was her apprentice!"

"I thought we went over this," Roderich sighed.

"Why not let Alice decide?" Alfred suggested.

Both Roderich and Francis turned to look at me.

"Look, guys. I don't want to choose anyone. I don't want feelings to be get hurt." It was a cheesy excuse, but it was the only thing I had.

"Why don't we all train her at different times?" Ludwig proposed. His solution was the only rational one.

"Of course! Why didn't I think of that before?" Francis smacked himself on the head. "Your training sessions will start off with me, okay?"

"Since I'm her mentor, I thought I was going to start off," Roderich said.

"I'm her mentor!" Francis said defensively.

"Whatever, whatever!" I shouted, breaking up their quarrel. "Alright, Francis. Your training session is first."

Francis smirked while Roderich groaned.

"Alright Alice, this way!"

Francis sat me down at one of the salon chairs. He held up a small porcelain teacup. It was white with a golden line across the top. An intricate design of flowers woven together was around the circumference of the cup. He grabbed a teaset and poured himself a cup of tea.

"You see, Alice, when drinking something in a cup like this, you should extend your pinky out when you put your teacup down. It can act as a cushion for your cup and can also help you maintain balance." He demonstrated this maneuver with ease. "You try it."

I picked up a teacup and poured myself some tea, just as he did. I took a sip, and tried to set it down in the way he taught me. This resulted in spilt tea and a broken cup.

"Well, maybe you need a little bit of more work on that trick," Francis said. "Don't worry, you'll get it in no time! Let's try something else."

He's a bit eager to train me. Something tells me he's going to teach me something far more intense than just tea-drinking tips.

"Now, this next test is a bit more.. harder." Francis pulled out a toy chest and dug around in it. He took out numerous books, one by one.

"Is this what I think it is?" I sighed.

"Unfortunately, yes." Francis organized the books onto one, neat stack. "Every host has to have a good balance and posture."

"How many books should I do?" I grabbed the stack and set it down on a table.

"Just start off with one. With every book you can successfully stack on your head, we add another book." Francis, without warning, placed a book one my head.

It wobbled, threatening to fall off. After a few seconds of stabilizing myself, it sat there unmoving.

"Good job. Here comes another one." Francis set a thicker book on my head, putting weight on my crown.

Yet again, it sat crooked on my head and almost fell over, but then balanced perfectly.

"You're doing good, Alice." Francis picked up another book and gently put another book on the other books toppling on my head. As soon as he laid it down, the stack fell over.

"Two books. Not too bad, Alice." Francis picked up the overthrown books and returned them back to his toy chest. "With time, you'll get better."

"Okay, I think I'm getting the hang of this. What's the next step?"

"Well, you're not gonna like it." Francis dug around in his toy chest again.

I raised an eyebrow. "Oh? What is it?"

He took out a yardstick. "Do I have your consent to... hit you? With this?"

"Wait, what?" I stared at it with a confused look.

"Well, each host must be composed, elegant, et cetera. The purpose of this is to train your pain tolerance. If you can, in the future, be struck and not flinch, you will have passed. So, do I have consent?"

I considered this for a few moments. I don't want to be seen as weak in front of everyone, and I think I can bear it. The faster I get this over with and meet their standards, I don't have to worry about this 'training.'

"I hope that yardstick is only used for measuring, and nothing else. Regardless, you have my consent." I closed my eyes and braced for impact.

With no hesitation, he struck the yardstick against my hand.

"Ow!" I clutched my hand towards my chest.

"Oh my god, are you okay?" Francis immediately dropped the stick and rushed over to me.

"I'm.. Fine. Just do that again. I need practice, right?" I tried to play it off as cool, but my hand was still aching.

"Are you sure?" Francis picked up the stick again, unsure.

I nodded, and gave a fake smile. "Just do it on my other hand."

Francis struck my hand again, but instead of lashing out and shouting, I flinched.

"Maybe this step is too extreme," Ludwig said.

"No, no," I assured, clutching my newly-struck hand. "I need this practice, anyway."

"I.. I don't know," Francis sighed. "I don't know if this is a good idea."

"I think that's enough for Alice. Let her take a break and then we'll move on to me." Roderich stared at the red mark left on my palm.

I gritted my teeth. "Don't underestimate me. I don't need a break. What I need is to get on with my training."

Roderich raised an eyebrow, but remained silent. "Well, what I'll be teaching you is proper manners."

"Proper manners? Seriously? This is the 21st century, not the 18th century." I rolled my eyes.

"There are precise rules to etiquette that must be followed. You must know when to show emotion, how to engage in graceful conversation, and how to act courteously. Manners are important, especially when interacting with women."

"I'm a woman and I don't care about manners," I said.

"Yeah, but you're different," Francis pointed out.

"Different in what way, Francis?" I asked.

"Well, you're-"

"It was a rhetorical question, Francis." I sighed.

Roderich cleared his throat to catch my attention. "This club is seen as very formal, and you must not fall short of this expectation. Moments of silence are far beyond awkward and there must always be a sense of what is socially acceptable and frowned upon. Here in Japan, etiquette is much more present than in England."

"Okay, okay. What should I begin with?"

"During conversation, when you greet someone, you must greet them with a bow, a curtesy, or whatever you fancy. Get familiar with this action."

"Bowing? Seriously?" I snorted.

"Do it," a Roderich ordered.

I followed his command.

"You're too stiff. Learn how to put more force and character into your bow." Roderich narrowed his eyes.

"There are characteristics in a bow?!"

"Yes. A bow can show what type of person you are. If you bow slowly, it indicates respect and kindness. If you bow fast, it shows that you're fast-paced, energetic, and upbeat."

What a bunch of nonsense.

"Whatever you say," I said.

"When you greet someone, you don't show any emotion. You should be curt, cautious, and blank-faced."

"Okay. Gotcha," I blindly agreed.

"Try pretending that Francis is a stranger. Greet him." Roderich pushed me towards Francis, making me bump into him.

Once I backed away from Francis, his 'host personality' kicked in.

"Hello, Madame," he addressed me, giving a kind smile.

I was about to say hello back, but I remembered to bow. "Good evening- er, afternoon, sir," I awkwardly replied.

Without hesitation or warning, he grabbed my hand and kissed it.

"Gross!" I immediately retraced my hand back and crossed my arms.

"Alice, that's one of the formal greetings people use. You have to get used to it," Roderich informed me.

"But it's just gross," I said. "I'd rather not have people kissing my body parts all the time, thank you very much."

"Would you rather have him kiss both your cheeks?" Roderich sighed.

Francis winked. "What do you say?"

"Never in a million years. No thanks," I said, declining the offer.

"Try that again, Alice," Roderich ordered.

I rolled my eyes. I bowed, and then offered my hand to Francis. Once again, he kissed it, but I couldn't argue.

"Much better," Roderich said, looking less impatient. "Tomorrow, I'll teach you more about proper manners."

I groaned. "More training. Yippee. My favorite."

"Learn how to deal with it," Roderich deadpanned.

"Yay! Is it my turn?" Feliciano asked, his eyes as wide.

"No," Roderich reminded, shaking his head. "It's the twins' turn."

"Screw that," Alfred said lazily.

"We have nothing to train her," Matthew explained.

"Well, that's true. All you guys do as hosts is just obsess over eachother. I'm not surprised you don't have any host skills," I said.

"Look, don't try to provoke me, sweetie," Alfred chuckled.

"Give it up, honey." Matthew flipped his hair dramatically.

"Roderich, let's just give them a break," Francis sighed. "Might as well let them lay off. It's not like we don't have enough to teach Alice already."

"Well, if you think it's a good idea, then we'll let them relax. I guess it really is your turn, Feliciano."

"Yay!" Feliciano cried.

He jumped to the center of the room, threw on an artist's mock and an apron, and grabbed a paintbrush. Roderich wheeled in two canvases and a small table with paintbrushes and paint pallets on them.

"Every host needs to know how to express their emotions in a painting!" Feliciano explained. "I'll teach you how to express your repressed emotions inside your mind and transfer them to a canvas! Well, that and the basics of drawing. But, let's begin!"

"What am I going to be painting?" I asked, picking up the paintbrush like it was a pencil.

"Do you need a model for your nude Renaissance painting?" Francis started to unbutton his school uniform.

"Yay! Are we having a siesta?"

Francis' stripping triggered Feliciano to strip, thus creating a stripping chain reaction.

"For the love of God, please put your clothes back on!" I shielded my eyes and looked away.

"Alice is right," Roderich groaned while also looking away.

I heard two collective sighs.

"Okay, fine," Francis said. "You can look now."

Instead of a naked Francis for a model, there was a bowl with fruit in it. Thank goodness.

"You see, you should paint the bowl of fruits with whatever strategy you want to use. You can outline the whole thing and then paint it, or you can just paint the whole thing in one go. You decide." Feliciano dabbed his paintbrush in paint, and then drew strokes on his easel.

Okay. Painting. Shouldn't be too hard, right? I mean, I have Art as one of my classes. I should ace this.

I daintily picked up my paintbrush and dabbed it in the brown so I could paint the bowl first. Once I drew a basic bowl and added a bit of shading in it, it looked great. I then dipped my brush in red for an apple, green for a pear, and purple for grapes. After a few minutes, I was done.

"Alright!" Feliciano cheered. "Let's see it!"

When I compared Feliciano's painting to mine, I felt a bit jealous. His was much better in pretty much every aspect. The shading was more accurate, the colors seemed brighter, and it seemed more realistic.

Oh well. That's no problem. I'm sure mine is still good, though!

"So, what do you think?" I asked everyone.

Francis looked disgusted, the twins were smirking, Roderich had a strange expression, Feliciano was smiling, and Ludwig was expressionless.

Let's just call it 'mixed reviews.'

"L-looks great, Alice.." Francis complimented.

"Thank you!" I said with pride.

The twins burst out laughing uncontrollably.

"I'm sorry," Alfred said while wiping a tear. "It looks horrible!"

"Excuse me?" I gasped, eyes narrowed.

"It looks like you smeared paint on an easel and called it art!" Matthew snorted.

"You two brats wouldn't know art if it strangled you!" I shouted.

"Sorry, Alice." Roderich pushed up his glasses. "It's mediocre at best."

Are you serious? I thought I had a talent! I thought I was a prodigy! No wonder I'm struggling so much in Art.

"Cheer up, Alice!" Feliciano said. "Once I teach you more, I'm sure you'll be amazing!"

"Okay, Ludwig. It's your turn," Roderich said, cueing him to begin.

"Alice, I'll teach you how to be both mentally and physically strong. To be a host, you have to be both of these things," Ludwig said.

I suspected that this might be the most I'll ever hear from Ludwig.

"Oh, okay, I get it!" I chirped. "I'm gonna learn how to, like, fight people, right?" I punched the air to demonstrate my skills.

"Yes. I will teach you how to fight. However, you'll learn that in the later stages of training. The first things you have to learn are breathing exercises."

I groaned. "Are you serious? Breathing exercises? This is a waste of my time."

"Alice, maintain a positive attitude," Roderich ordered. "There's no need to be so pessimistic."

Ludwig ignored my complaints. "Breathe in for about seven seconds. Hold that breath

for four seconds. Then, exhale for five seconds. Practice this for ten minutes."

Ten minutes?! God, I thought training was going to be bad, but not this bad.

Regardless, I stood there and breathed. The other members left me to do my business and did more productive things.

I hate this club already and I've only been in it for three days.

After minutes of rigorously looking up at the clock to see when my breathing session would end, I exhaled a breath of relief when it finally did.

"I'm done my breathing exercise!" I yelled at Roderich.

He seemed to be typing something on a laptop. He didn't even bother to look up. "Good job, Alice," he said, uninterested. "You're done for the day with your training introduction. You can go home now."

I quickly glanced up at the clock again. "But it's only-"

"Don't worry about it. Just go home." He waved his hand in the air to dismiss me.

"Whatever," I muttered under my breath.

As I took one final look around the music room, my eyes lingered on Francis.

When will he let me quit this club for good? Why does he like keeping me in his club? Why is the only person qualified to let me leave an idiot?

These questions repeated in my mind as I left the music room.

* * *

 **Chapter Two, Part Two: Could This Be a Budding Romance?**

My eyes skimmed over the clipboard containing my remaining appointments. My final client is-

"Hello, I'm here for my appointment."

Erin.

My eyes flickered up from the board and I gave her a bright smile. "You've been visiting me an awful lot lately. What's the matter? Have you gotten too attached?"

"Oh, knock it off, will you?" She also gave me a playful smile. "At this point, I see you as a friend. And this 'visit' is just a form of me hanging out with you."

"Always the same pattern, though," I pointed out. "The Host Club's official last appointment of the day."

"Well, I want to make sure no one else can eavesdrop," Erin explained.

"Yeah. I suppose it's a good thing." I rested my elbows on my legs. "I'm just glad I have someone who knows who I really am. The only other people who know are-"

"Guys who forced you into joining your club?" Erin interrupted.

We both bursted out in laughter.

"It feels like I finally have a friend at this school, y'know?" I grinned once again.

"Think of this as me doing you a favor," Erin said. "When I was a new kid, I didn't make any friends for at least four months."

"Well, at least I have a more positive outlook on my current situation," I said.

"It can't be all bad, right?" Erin looked around the room, eyeing all the members. "I mean, you're surrounded by a bunch of cute, charming guys!"

I raised an eyebrow. "I didn't take you as someone who'd fall for the whole 'host facade.' Trust me, they're not as charming as they seem behind closed doors."

"Oh, no. I just thought that you might like one of them. You spend a lot of time with them and everything, so.."

"Oh god no." I shook my head. "I don't think I'd ever like a single one of them in a million years. I don't even want to think about that possibility."

"Anyways, I don't think I'd ever like one of the hosts either," Erin said, agreeing with me. "There's someone else for me.."

"Oh? Who is this 'someone else?' Give me all the details."

"Don't worry about it," Erin chuckled as she playfully punched my shoulder. "I should get going now."

She stood up from her chair and started to leave. Just as she was about to make her official exit, Roderich exchanged a few words with her and handed her a flyer. She nodded, put the paper under her arm, and then left.

"Alice.." All of a sudden, Francis appeared behind me.

"What is it?"

"C-can you spend more time with Erin?" Francis twiddled his thumbs.

"Um, why?" I turned my head to make eye contact with him.

"Well.. When you're with her, you seem much more... feminine."

I rolled my eyes. "And why do you care about how feminine I am?"

"As a big brother, I've always wanted to have a little sister," he explained. "I pictured my soon-to-be little sister as very girly, and, um, p-pretty. I even dreamed of dressing up my little sister in cute pink dresses. When I realized you were a girl, I was very excited. But then I found out you were the complete opposite of feminine."

I sighed. "This is exactly why I don't like having my gender associated with my personality."

The Francis was about to open his mouth to say something, but Roderich interrupted him.

"Alice. We need to discuss the upcoming party." He handed me one of the flyers that he was giving out to the girls earlier.

"It's a..?"

"Masquerade ball," Roderich finished. "It was The King's idea."

"Yes, a masquerade ball!" Francis cried. "Where two anonymous people can dance together without consequence! For romances to develop without strings attached! It's a perfect idea, isn't it?"

"Sure." I shrugged. "But am I really ready for this?"

"You've been training for a week on end. You're ready," Roderich reassured me. "The main issue I have is what you'll wear at the masquerade."

Suddenly, Francis' eyes lit up. "I'll choose what you wear, Alice!" Francis said. "This is my chance to dress you up however I want to, just like how I've dreamed of! So many possibilities, so many combinations..."

"You're kidding me." I tugged on Roderich's sleeve urgently. "You can't let him do this!"

"Sorry," Roderich said. "He's the boss. He does what he wants to. Plus, it's in the contract that you have to obey-"

"Fine! I get it! I'm an idiot for not reading the fine print!" I interrupted. "I'll just let him choose my outfit."

Francis squealed in delight. "Come with me, Alice! We have to go to the costume room right now!"

As he grabbed my hand and dragged me out of the music room, he seemed to have a faraway look in his eyes. Like he was fantasizing something.

What was he thinking about?

* * *

 **The theatre of Francis' mind:**

Through the endless crowds of people, Francis' eyes were only focused on one masked belladonna.

She had a long, flowing waterfall of bright, blonde hair. Her eyes reminded him of peridots and emeralds, but she was more precious in his eyes. She was hidden away by a golden-trimmed mask and adorned a breathtaking red ballgown that swept across the floor. Her body was accompanied nicely by the dress, making her appear very shapely and curvy.

This stranger was no stranger to Francis, as for he could put a name to this gorgeous belle of the ball.

The one, the only:

Alice Kirkland.

He gracefully made his way towards this ravishing beauty and simply extended his hand. No words needed to be spoken. She could understand the gesture like a second language.

As they waltzed across the ballroom floor, all eyes were focused on them and them only. They were the main attraction.

"Everyone is watching us," the belle whispered to Francis, eyes wide.

"Needn't worry," he reassured her, holding her in a tight embrace. "With me by your side, you'll have no cares. It's just me and you, forever and ever. No one else will ever get in between us."

Then, she recognized this masked, rugged, and stunning man.

"Francis, I love you," the enchantress admitted.

"I love you too."

And with that, their lips met, and all their worries melted away. They could've kissed each other for an eternity if nobody was watching. But still, all eyes were on them.

Suddenly, she pulled away from the kiss, her face filled with concern.

"Francis!"

"Shh, keep your voice down," he cooed her, placing a finger over her lips.

"Francis! For God's sake, snap out of it!"

And then, reality came into view.

* * *

I tugged on Francis' sleeve and shouted his name to get his attention, but it was no use. He walked head-first into a door.

"Ow!"

"I was trying to get your attention," I sighed. "What came over you?"

"Oh.. Nothing," he quickly said.

He rubbed his temples and proceeded to open the door.

"You sit tight and I'll pick out an outfit, got it?" Francis rushed towards the large armoires in the center of the room.

I sat in anticipation as he dug through the closets.

First, he pulled out a pair of black lace gloves.

"Gloves are a must-have. Try those on."

I slipped them over my hands effortlessly. They weren't all too appealing, but they were comfortable.

Second, he made a pile of dresses he wanted me to wear.

"See which one in that pile you want to wear," he said.

The pile contained an abundance of horrid dresses. One of them was a tacky bright shade if yellow. The next one was stained and a dreary hue of beige. Another one was a frilled mess of shapes and colors. I could go on and on listing all the unflattering outfits.

I picked out a simple red gown that didn't need a hoop-skirt and came along with a nice shawl. "What do you think?" I asked.

"Ooh, nice choice!" he complimented as he turned to glance at it. "It'll make your eyes pop, too."

Finally, he pulled out a pair black of high heels.

"High heels are essential for the look. Try them on and see if they're your size."

"High heels?" I groaned. "I've never worn them before. I just know that they hurt and are uncomfortable."

"Oh, don't worry. It's only an one-inch heel. Just try it on."

I slipped the heels over my feet and wobbled over to him.

"Put on the entire outfit. I need to see if it works," he ordered. "Just slip the dress over your uniform."

Once I had the whole getup on, he looked me up and down.

"Perfect! Just what I had in mind. You can take off everything and just give it to me. I'll make sure to have everything ready by tomorrow. I'll get you a mask, too."

"Should I go back to the music room?" I asked.

"Oh, you can just go home. That's all I needed to do with you. And besides, you need to get ready." He folded my outfit in a neat pile.

"Oh, okay. Thanks!"

As I left the room and walked to the main school doors, I pondered over the way Francis acted. Why is he so nice to me all of a sudden? And what was he thinking about back there?

I guess I shouldn't worry about it.

I should be worrying about tomorrow, though.

* * *

 **Chapter Two, Part Three: Beautiful Wings and Feathered Things**

Today, I was dreading the moment where I'd walk into the Third Music Room.

Today's the masquerade ball. The party that is celebrating when I joined this club.

Just try to stay positive, alright?

As I pushed open the doors, the usual 'blinding light' shone and the rush of rose petals flew towards me.

I sighed. I didn't have enough time to go through this whole gimmick.

When I entered the room, everyone was already gone. There was a small note attached to table along with a pink bag next to it.

I picked up the note and read it.

 _Alice,_

 _We're already in our costumes, down at the cafeteria. That's where our 'ballroom' is. By the time you're reading this, you'll have approximately ten minutes to get into your outfit and to get down here. Don't be late._

 _-Roderich_

I picked up the bag and stared inside. If Roderich was the one who packed it, I should be cautious. As far as I knew, there could've been a clown costume in there. Luckily, it was what I was expecting. My normal getup.

I went to the changing rooms and slipped on the gloves, zipped up the dress' zipper, and put my feet into the high heels. I was about to leave until I remembered the mask.

I grabbed the mask from the bag and stared at it. It was a golden-trimmed mask with a small black ribbon. I put it on and rushed down towards the cafeteria. When I got there, everyone was already inside the 'ballroom.'

There was a large crowd of people, all of them anonymous. There were an equal amount of boys and girls, surprisingly.

I wanted to go and find the rest of the host club, but I remembered that they could be anyone in this room. There would be no way to identify them.

As I quickly glanced around the room, I noticed an orchestra towards the back, all of them wearing their matching black masks.

Somehow, a silent cue was passed, and a man seated at a grand piano ran his fingers against the ivory keys, letting his arms guide his hands across the keyboard. His hands danced across the clavier with a smooth rhythm and an even tempo. With every measure he completed, he slightly , as he swayed his hips to the beat. A woman accompanied him, her fingers gliding against the fingerboard and her bow sliding across the strings, making a clear sound. They were both articulate and skilled, as they clearly demonstrated this by playing. Together, their music made a classy yet upbeat tune. Then, the whole orchestra joined in, adding to the music nicely.

There were many strange people in strange outfits. Some adorned a classic black cloak and a simple mask while others donned flashy and extravagant garments that were sure to catch the eye of someone wandering by. Looking around the room, I found a few examples; one lady had a teal ballroom gown studded with aquamarines and peacock feathers, her face hidden away by a silver mask with a brazen peacock plume. Another man had a black and blood red tricorn jauntily sitting upon his head, a volto mask proudly resting on his face, and a coat that was as black as night.

Once the music started, people chatted amongst themselves, their interactions echoing off the walls. People had already started to take a partner to join them in their dance. They waltzed along the reflective surface of the marble flooring, their heels clicking and the ends of their dresses sweeping against the ground.

A dazzling chandelier hung from the ceiling, gilded with silver and made with crystal lights. The candlelight was dimmed enough so that the ambiance was mysterious and dark. Faces were shadowed by the shrouding darkness that blanketed the entire ballroom. The only things that shone were sequins sewn onto dresses and glitter applied to the skin that occasionally caught the scarce light.

The windows were pristine and clean, covered by an arched iron grill. Velvet curtains were tied up next to them, so the outside sky could be viewed. From the windows, you could see twinkling starlight shimmering in the indigo night. The full moon hung from the clouds, giving off eerie and pale moonlight.

Along every ceiling corner of the walls, a golden cornice would be found. The walls were ornate and intricate; they were covered in small swirling and curling designs and complex twists and turns. The ceiling also had a large mural painted on it that stretched across the entire upper interior. It was a painting depicting youthful angels with grand feathered wings and a bouquet held in their hands while flying across a pearly sky. The angels were circling around each other in loops mid-flight, as flowers rained down from them. The floor also reflected this image.

As I was busy admiring the décor of the ballroom, more and more people had joined together in a dance. It seemed like everyone on the dance floor knew and planned out every move and step they would take. They all seemed to dance together in a similar pattern and fashion. When someone accidentally desynchronized from the beat, a few moments later everyone would rejoin in the same pace. Watching everyone twirling and whirling around was hypnotizing.

I was so caught up in watching everyone else I almost didn't hear the person behind me. I swiftly turned around to face my visitor.

It was a girl. She was wearing a strapless regal navy blue ballgown that had a line of rhinestones around the hems and the waist of the dress. Her hair color was unidentifiable because her hair was tied up in a tight bun and a black birdcage veil along with a large purple bow was toppled on the top of her head. Her face was obscured by a midnight blue mask that matched her dress.

There was no way I could recognize her. The only remarkable trait that I could pinpoint about her were her dark blue eyes that stared at me with high intensity. To be frank, she was extremely intimidating.

"May we dance?" She asked, no emotion in her voice.

She held out her gloved hand, waiting for my answer. In this situation, I felt as if I had no choice.

"I would be honored," I said, accepting the offer.

With no hesitation, she grabbed me by the waistline as my eyes widened. She intended to escort me to the section where most people were dancing but it felt more like she was pushing me towards her destination. I scrambled around blindly with the aid of my dancing partner until she stopped with no warning. Once we were there she took her hands off my waist and instead took my hand.

And in that moment, I felt like I'd forgotten how to dance. While she was spinning around in fancy twirls to the beat of the energetic song that was playing I was lagging behind and nearly tripping over my own feet. She started to exaggeratedly swing her hips like she was dancing salsa. She then grabbed me and made me move with her, like we were one being moving together in synchronized steps and spins. It was hard for me to keep up, but I barely managed to.

"Are you from Europe?" I breathlessly inquired, trying to make room for conversation.

"Belarus," she stoically responded as she gyrated me.

"England," I answered back, nearly choking on my own saliva.

And after that, we mostly danced in silence. She kept spinning me around in circles and made me frolic around a bit. While I was struggling to breathe, she seemed to hardly break a sweat. I was shocked by the amount of endurance this woman had.

When the song ended, she left me go mid-dance and I nearly bumped into someone. She disappeared into the crowd, blending in with the environment. I tried to spot her within the waves of people but she was completely gone. In a mere matter of seconds, she had made her departure. I was still gasping for breath and made no attempt to chase after her.

What a peculiar character.

After that first dance, a seemingly never-ending list of people came up and wished to dance. I could only remember a few faces and a few details. A few people who stuck out to me was a man with a large scar across his face, a man with bird perched on his shoulder, a girl with glasses, and a man with a small ponytail. After a long night of dancing away, my legs were sore and aching and I felt like I pulled a muscle in my arm.

Who knew dancing was this hard?

I was about to take a break, but I was interrupted by one final suitor. He was a far distance away from me, but he caught my eye. He beckoned for me to come over.

It was a man with no particular traits that really stood out or marked me as intrigued. He was wearing the classic domino outfit; a black cloak was engulfed over the body and a simple black mask covered the face.

When I went up to him, he immediately smiled and held out his hand.

"May I have a dance?"

Well, I guess it couldn't hurt to just dance one more time.

"Of course," I said as took his hand.

And it all happened at once: the music transitioned to a melancholic ballad, the pace in which the people were dancing at slowed, and the atmosphere turned more somber than the previous upbeat and energetic mood.

He grabbed my waist and I rested my hands on his shoulders. We shuffled around the dance floor, moving with graceful steps.

"It's a beautiful night, isn't it?" He asked. His voice had a certain accent that sounded familiar, but I couldn't quite pinpoint where he was from.

"Certainly." I turned my head to look out one of the nearby windows.

"Too bad it'll never be as beautiful as you," he whispered.

"How you flatter me so, when you haven't even seen my entire face," I said back, smirking.

"Oh, believe me, I don't need to see your entire face to know you're beautiful," he flirted back, returning a smirk. "I would love to see what lays behind your mask, however."

I leaned in close towards him. "Maybe you will," I whispered into his ear.

"If I play my cards right?" He murmured.

"You're already playing your cards right." I leaned away from him and returned to the normal stance we held before.

The music fastened, so our dance quickened to match the pace.

"Can I tell you something?" He asked. "You're unlike any person I've ever met before."

"I could say the same for you, stranger," I replied.

"It's once in a blue moon where I can meet someone as gorgeous and intelligent as you," he said.

"Gorgeous and intelligent? You're stepping up your compliments a lot," I teased.

"I normally don't flirt this much," he admitted, giving a small smile. "But you will be my first and final exception."

"Oh, please," I said, laughing, "You're too good at this. There's no way you haven't done this before. Surely there has to be someone you've talked to this way before, right?"

"Nobody else," he promised, strengthening his grip on my waist. In response, I gave a possessively tight clutch on his shoulders.

The music shifted from a mezzopiano to a forte. The speed of the tune hastened, and it felt like it was drowning out any other sound.

My dancing turned into stumbling, as I struggled to keep up with my partner. My head was spinning and my my vision was blurred. I could almost hear television static droning on and on in my ears.

The music was crescendoing rapidly, and we kept dancing faster and faster. At this point, I don't know if it could be considered 'dancing.' The way I was doing it, it looked more like staggering.

And then, as the orchestra was playing the last few notes of the piece, my partner pushed me closer to him. He grabbed my face and pushed it closer to his.

In that moment, we could've kissed.

But we didn't.

My eyes flew open in surprise and I desperately tried to back away. In the last moment, I separated our lips with my hand. When he opened his eyes, I tried to back away again, but I tripped over his leg and fell on the ground. He offered his hand to me, but I recovered from the initial shock and stood up myself.

I could feel my cheeks heating up, reddening intensely. I faced the floor, letting my hair fall in front of my face to conceal my heavy blush.

"I'm s-sorry," I muttered, and before he could say or do anything, I ran away.

I pushed past people who were dancing nearby and I looked around for a door to get away from this wretched room. After looking through a large crowd of people, I saw an entryway leading to one of the hallways. I ran towards it, holding the sides of the dress so I wouldn't trip on it. I didn't want to look back to see if he was following me.

Once I left the ballroom and was completely out of sight, I plopped down on the ground. I took off my wig and mask and laid them next to me. I buried my face into my hands and started to cry.

Alice, what the hell do you think you're doing? You almost kissed a stranger. Are you out of your mind?

I almost kissed a stranger today. Am I out of my mind? What am I doing? I shouldn't have acted so careless with the way I was acting. I shouldn't have said those things. I took it too far. I shouldn't have danced in the first place.

I feel sick. I want to vomit.

Why do I do this to myself?

I sighed audibly and it echoed all throughout the corridor. I wiped the small streams of tears off my face.

"Alice?"

I perked my head up, trying to locate whoever said my name. It came from a stranger with a thick lace anemone mask that covered up most of her eyes and forehead. She wore a large pink dress with a hoop skirt underneath. It had many red and pink ribbons in various places.

She took off her mask, and a few ginger locks tumbled down the sides of her face.

"Erin? Is that you?" I asked.

She nodded. "I needed a break from all the dancing, so I left the room for a bit. I suppose that's what you're doing, considering that you're in here too.."

Her voice trailed off as she noticed the tears on my cheeks.

She opened her mouth to say something, but I quickly stopped her. "Don't worry about it. It's nothing."

"I'd sit down next to you, but my dress is really irritating me," she said, changing the topic. "I didn't even choose this outfit. My mother did."

"I think it's nice, but I think the hoop skirt might've overdone it," I suggested.

"Yeah, but I had a fun night. The dancing is really tiring after a while." Erin stared up at the ceiling, trying to avert her gaze from mine.

"Yeah. My legs are really sore. I didn't know dancing was this intense." I chuckled. "It's good exercise, though."

Erin and I had a short moment of silence, but it was broken by voices coming from down the hallway.

"I suppose this party was your ingenious idea?"

"Indeed it was."

Erin and I immediately stared at eachother in alarm. We ran behind two nearby pillars and continued to eavesdrop on the conversation.

"I'm not surprised. Smart and good-looking. You have it all, don't you?"

"I don't have it all. I have you, and that's all I'd ever need."

Erin peered through the crack between our two hiding pillars. She gasped, and hid behind her pillar.

"Do you know who they are?" I whispered.

"It's Anabel and Francis!" At this point, her face was so red I couldn't tell if she was angry or just blushing.

And then, I understood. With Erin's flustered expression and the tone of her voice, it all made sense. Anabel was Erin's 'special someone.'

I peeked through the crack and saw Francis and Anabel arm-in-arm and unmasked. They were just in their school uniforms. They were looking at each-other with fond expressions.

"Alice, quick, we have to kiss!" Erin said.

"Wait, what?! Why?" My cheeks started to heat up.

"They're gonna watch." She grabbed my hand. "I need to make her jealous!"

"Erin-!"

Much like before, she grabbed my face and pushed it closer to hers. The only difference was that I wasn't fast enough to react.

In the movies, whenever someone gets kissed surprisingly, they struggle for a few seconds, but then relax into the kiss.

This situation was completely different.

Rather than affection and passion, my kiss was used as a tool to make someone jealous. How could my lips be manipulated like this? I never thought this was how my first kiss was going to be.

I struggled and tried to pull away, but I knew that if I pulled away first I'd never hear the end of it. When we heard the shocked gasps of our bystanders, she let go. We separated, and I tumbled back. To my utter horror, I fell into Francis' arms.

I immediately jumped away from the two of them and stood next to Erin's side. The four of us were completely silent, but we all had mortified looks.

"Alice.." Francis murmured.

"Erin.." Anabel muttered.

Without any further word, Erin took off, leaving me with the two of them as she ran down the hall. For a few moments, I stood there paralyzed with shock. When I regained myself, I ran away.

The heavy footsteps behind me indicated that they were chasing me.

I reached a fork in the hallway. Left or right? I'll go left. As I ran, I was tempted to knock down any tables or vases I saw, but I knew I couldn't ever repay them for the damage. Instead, I hoped that my sheer speed could get them to lose me.

Logically, one would go after Erin and one would go after me. I knew Francis wasn't quite as fast as me, but I don't know how fast Anabel runs. For all I know, she could be behind me.

Ahead of me was a sharp corner. Just as I was about to turn, I almost knocked in to a person. I was about to say sorry, but then I realized the 'person' was Anabel.

I instantly turned around and ran in the way I came from, almost tripping over my own feet.

"Arthur! Come back here, goddamnit!" Anabel shouted after me.

When she said those words, fear struck my heart and I ran even faster.

I ran past the ballroom entranceway and I found myself on the grand staircase. I ran up to the very top floor, where I knew the Northern Hallway was. Once I was there, I scrambled to the Third Music Room. I opened the door, ran inside, and closed it shut.

I propped myself up against the doors and pressed my ear on them. I could hear Anabel's footsteps going down the hall, past the music room.

I sighed a breath of relief.

Maybe Roderich will somehow notice that I'm not at the masquerade, but I could care less now. I just need to get away from everything and everyone. I need a break.

I stood there, leaning against the door for a couple of minutes. I thought no one was going to bother me until someone knocked on the door.

I stepped away as the doors opened.

Francis stood in the entryway, his eyes dilating as we made eye contact. He stepped into the room, letting the doors close on their own. I wanted to just run behind him and leave, but he was completely blocking off the doors.

"Alice, you have a lot of explaining to do," Francis sighed.

Francis was a lot of things. He was idiotic, a total flirt, and a fool. Out all the things he could've been, I would've never guessed that he would be serious and angry.

"L-look, I had no part in this! Erin was the ringleader of this-this.. plan!" I exasperatedly shouted, gesticulating frantically.

"You didn't have to kiss her!" He yelled back, even more distressed than I was.

"It's not even that important! It's just a kiss!" I cried, turning my open palms into clenched fists.

"Just a kiss?! Let me guess, that was your first kiss, wasn't it?" His eyes became glossy and watery.

"Fine! It was my first kiss! Why do you care so much?! It's not like I wanted this! I wasn't even the one who kissed her! She kissed me!" I argued back, crossing my arms.

"Why do I care? Why do I care?! You can't go around kissing people randomly like that! Do you even understand what kissing someone means? It's a romantic gesture that is strictly prohibited within lovers or siblings! You two are neither of those!"

What? Is he serious?! The audacity he has to say something like that when all he does is smother his clients with compliments!

"What are you..?" My eyebrows furrowed. "You have some bloody nerve saying stuff like that! Don't tell me you don't go around kissing and hugging your clients all the time! Your hypocrisy is infuriating!"

The thing that I hated the most was that this was the type of anger that made me tear up. My throat became dry and my eyes started to glisten.

Francis looked shocked for a moment until his face twisted into a sorrowful look. "I don't... go around kissing my clients, Alice. I wouldn't do something like that no matter how beautiful they may be." His look of sorrow turned into a look of scorn. "There's only one person I want to kiss, and that's you, Alice! That's you!"

And with that, the tears sprouting from my eyes rolled down my cheeks. He left the Music Room and slammed the door shut. The tears started to become streams as I heard him going down the hallway.

Why am I crying...?

I plopped myself on the floor, back against the doors. I pulled my knees to my chest and just laid my head on them. The tears came down my face, on my legs, and then made a small pool on the ground.

Why am I crying over him?

Why am I such an idiot?

"There's only one person I want to kiss, and that's you, Alice! That's you!"

Those words kept replaying in my mind. What did he even mean by that? He wants to.. Kiss me..?

After hearing those words, multiple images came to mind. I stopped myself from continuing these deranged fantasies.

For minutes on end, I just sat there in the music room, contemplating and thinking about the whole situation. I thought about what Francis said to me and the whole thing with Erin kissing me.

Should I just stay in this room until someone else finds me?

No, I should go out and try to find the others. Maybe we can all explain everything to each other so we don't permanently scar our relationships and friendships.

As I remembered the argument between Francis and I, I realized that our friendship might already be scarred.

Well, it doesn't matter. Whatever shambles of a friendship we still have left, it will be saved.

I stood up, wiped the tears off my face, and left the music room.

Okay, you didn't think this through, Alice. Where are you going to find them? God knows where Francis is right now, Erin is probably hiding, and Anabel will be looking for both me and Erin. The only place where they might be at is near the ballroom.

Once I made my way back to the hallway leading to the ballroom, I noticed my mask and my wig scattered on the ground. After a hesitant decision, I grabbed the two items and discarded them in a nearby trashcan. It's not like I'm going to use them in the future, anyways.

After a little bit of more walking, I heard distant interactions in front of me. I could barely hear what they were saying, but the voices were loud enough for me to identify. Most likely, it was Anabel and Erin. I hid behind a nearby wall and peeked my head out to see them talking.

"I knew it! You like Arthur, don't you?" Anabel accused, a clear look of jealousy on her face.

I almost didn't realize the footsteps behind me. I turned around, only to be greeted with the sight of Francis.

"So, are we going to have another heartfelt argument about love?" I sardonically asked.

"We'll talk about that later," he angrily huffed back.

He stood next to me, leaning against the wall to make sure he was completely hidden.

"So what if I do? Why should you care?" Erin argued back, balling up her fists.

"Oh my god!" Anabel shouted, her face growing red. "You're so... aggravating and difficult to work with! Stop being so snarky and just answer me for once!"

"Look, just because I kissed Arthur doesn't mean I like him. Truth is, I did it because you and Francis were watching, and I wanted to make you angry! I guess I got what I wanted, huh?!"

"I'm beyond angry, Erin! I'm infuriated! I'm.. I'm radiating hostility!" Anabel sarcastically cried. "You don't need to make up excuses for having your new 'boy toys!' At this point, I just want the truth from you. Do you like Arthur or not?! So far, you've been dodging the question and avoiding an answer!"

"Should we intervene?" I whispered to Francis.

"Not yet," he said.

"Why does it matter so much to you if I like him? You're the one who's hanging around Frenchy-Face all the time!" Erin groaned, rolling her eyes. "So what if I missed Arthur?! You've probably kissed Francis dozens of times!"

Hm. 'Frenchy-Face.' An interesting nickname. I think I'll use that sometime.

Anabel displayed an expression of disgust. "Are you serious? You'd think I'd actually kiss him?!" She gagged to exaggerate her point. "He reeks of roses and perfume. I think I'm actually starting to grow sick of him."

I glanced towards Francis and noticed how pale his complexion turned. He looked utterly offended, mouth gaping in shock. I could see him starting to move away from his position, ready to leave his hiding spot. I tried to grab his shirt and pull him back, but it was no use.

"Francis! Don't intervene-"

I stopped mid-sentence because he already did.

Oh my god. He is the biggest idiot on the face of this planet.

I groaned and sighed. If he's revealing himself, I guess I will too. I stepped away from the eavesdropping-wall and stood next to Francis.

"A-Anabel..?" Francis' voice trailed off. "You're sick of me? Do you despise me..?"

Her face was strained by a fake and nervous smile. "W-what? Francis? Of course I don't..! Haha.."

I rolled my eyes. "You don't need to keep up the act anymore."

Anabel dropped the smile. "Truth is, I didn't really have any feelings for you in the first place, Francis."

He staggered back as if he was struck by a physical blow. He stumbled around, almost tripping. He then walked to a corner, sat himself down, pulled his knees to his chest, and faced away from us.

Erin and Anabel didn't seem to notice.

"What?! Are you joking? If you didn't even like Francis, why do you have hang around him so much?" Erin asked.

"I didn't go to the host club for Francis! I went there for.. other reasons. Look, it doesn't matter, okay? What I want to know is what's going on between you and Arthur!" Anabel said.

"Oh my god," Erin sighed, rubbing her temples. "You don't have to worry about Arthur because Arthur isn't even a guy!"

As soon as she said those words, my eyes perked up. Francis, from his own corner, widened his eyes and stared at Erin.

"Oh, right..." Erin chuckled nervously. "I wasn't supposed to say that.."

Anabel stood there expressionless for a few seconds. "You're telling me.. that Arthur... is a girl..?'

"U-uh, well..." Erin glanced towards me, wanting me to speak up.

"Yeah. I'm a girl," I simply explained.

"Oh." Anabel's anger left her face. "Well, truth is, I started going to the Host Club so often so I could spy on you with Arthur."

"I would've stopped going to the Host Club if you didn't show up so often. I thought you liked Francis so I kept coming to spy on you with Francis."

There was a long, awkward pause.

Anabel walked up to Erin, whispered something in her ear, and Erin giggled. They then linked arms and walked down the hallway, laughing together.

All of a sudden, Francis stood up from his corner and came up behind me. "Well, that was a surprisingly good ending," he said.

"Yeah," I agreed, slightly nodding. "What should we do now?"

"Let's just head back to the Music Room," he suggested.

Together, side by side, we returned to the music room. Once the doors closed and we were in the room, there was a long silence.

"What do we do now?" I asked. "Should we wait until the others come back?"

"We have a good fifthteen minutes before the masquerade officially ends," Francis said.

"What should we do to kill the time?"

Francis' eyes lit up. "I have a good idea." He grabbed my waist. "Let's dance."

I was hesitant, but I didn't remove his hands off my hips. "I don't know, I mean.."

"It'd be a shame for all that training to go to waste," Francis said, smiling.

"Well, I wouldn't call it a waste, but, fine."

I wrapped my arms around him in a secure lock as we danced around the music room. Sure, there was no music playing, but we didn't need any. We moved together as one, swaying and turning at all the right times. With our synchronized moves, our hearts beat together. We were in perfect symmetry and harmony.

When we danced, it wasn't a struggle for me to keep up or to match my partner's moves. It felt like all his moves were predictable, and I was able to follow them.

"Alice?"

"What is it?"

"Do I really smell like roses and perfume?"

"Yeah... You do. A lot."


	3. Chapter Three

**Chapter Three, Part One: The Coquette and The Naive**

 **AN: Reviews, please?**

* * *

"Welcome."

I groaned as I brushed off the rose petals from my shoulders. I rubbed my eyes, sighing audibly so that the host club could hear how annoyed I was.

Through gritted teeth, I asked a question. "Do you really have to do the whole 'rose petals' and 'blinding light' thing?"

Despite the simplicity of my question, I didn't even get a real answer. Instead, I got a sarcastic and irritated reply.

"Do you really have to be so pessimistic?"

My eyes bored into Roderich's gleaming glasses. I displayed my pissed-off expression to him and he remained poker-faced.

As I was about to walk in, I realized the strange garments the Host Club was wearing. Not only did they look weird, but the room looked different too. I actually had to stifle a laugh when I saw how ridiculous they looked. Although I stopped myself from bursting out in laughter, I couldn't hold back the huge smile plastered on my face.

"What's.. What's all of this?" I asked, looking at all the different outfits they were wearing. I snickered under my breath.

"Well, I'm glad you asked, Alice!" Francis boomed, walking over to me. "Every once in a while, our Host Club dresses up in different outfits from different eras!"

"Why is that necessary?" I cocked my head.

Francis' face paled. "Well... Why not..?"

"It's for the ladies," Roderich butted in. "They enjoy seeing us in different clothing such as this."

That's when I couldn't contain my laughter anymore. A small chuckle turned into uncontrollable laughter. A few tears came to my eyes. I had to wipe them away as Francis sighed.

"Laugh all you want," Roderich said, "but keep in mind you'll have to wear this, too."

My laughter was cut off short. The twins bursted out in laughter when they saw my despair. My eyebrows knitted into a scowl.

"Fine," I huffed, ignoring the chorus of laughs behind me. "What's the era we're dressing from?"

"It's from the Renaissance!" Feliciano chirped. "It originated in my home-country!"

"I'm aware," I said. In a normal situation, I would've rolled my eyes, but I couldn't roll my eyes to Feliciano.

"Here's your outfit." Roderich presented me with the small pink bag containing my items.

I went to the changing rooms and groaned at how strange my outfit was.

It was an enormous coat made of rich and lavish silks, trimmed with different furs. It had tons of different layers sticking out everywhere that I had to smoothen out. It was an abundance of regal colors that were too eye catching. It was the pure definition of vanity: far too warm for everyday use and far too bulky for everyday activities. It only wanted the eyes of everyone on it.

The shirt I wore underneath the coat was clenched around my neck and wrists, and was extremely itchy. It even had a small brooch pinned over the breast. It seems unnecessary to accessorize something that's not going to be seen in the first place.

The shoes were uncomfortable, pointy, and were two sizes smaller than my actual feet.

I groaned again, is time even louder. Why did I have to get myself mixed up in this damned club?

I made my way back to the main room and shot Francis a dirty look. He only returned the look by giving a smile sweeter than honey.

"Well, I'm all dressed up," I said. "Sometimes I feel like you guys like seeing me miserable."

"Like is an understatement," Matthew chortled.

"I'd say I love seeing you miserable!" Alfred finished.

"Oh? Is that so, Alfred? You love me regardless if I'm miserable or not." I straightened my posture. "Can we just let the girls in already? I'm already starting to sweat."

Roderich pushed his glasses up to the bridge of his nose. "Always so inpatient," he said in a singsong voice. "Very well. I guess it couldn't hurt."

As if the doors were automated, they instantly opened as Roderich gave the cue. The girls rushed into the room, chittering and chattering loudly.

After our shifts were over and all the girls left, I instantly started to strip myself of the outfit. These clothes are unbearably hot.

"Alice..?!" Alfred seemed to be the one who noticed me first. He instantly looked away, his face red and hot.

"Would you relax? I have clothes under this, y'know," I sighed. At least he had the decency of looking away.

When I finally ridded myself of the layers upon layers of clothing and Roderich was about to close the doors, there was a loud, shrill voice down the hall.

"Wait!"

Roderich raised an eyebrow and held the door open. A girl ran through, tripping and falling upon the floor of the music room.

She had short, chin-length blonde hair that cupped around the sides of her face. Her hair was slightly bedraggled and tousled, and it was apparent that she was in a hurry to make her way here. She had a small, pink flower pin tucking away her bangs. Her eyes bared a striking resemblance to seafoam green. Her yellow dress was dirty and ragged, yet it still looked fashionable on her.

"Is this the Host Club?" She breathlessly inquired.

"My, my, my," Francis chuckled, walking towards her. He offered his hand and she took it. He helped her up while continuing to flatter her. "Such a distraught little robin.. Needn't worry, you're indeed in the presence of the Host Club."

I rolled my eyes. Francis can be so dramatic sometimes. 'You're indeed in the presence of the Host Club?!' What a pompous way of putting it!

The girl was stunned at Francis' ogling.

"I can tell you've been through a lot of trouble to find us," he cooed, resting his hand on the side of her face. "So, what brings you here?"

Suddenly, Francis had a change in expression. Francis immediately took his hand off her face. I expected him to be smiling sweetly. Instead, he looked confused. It was a pleasant change to witness.

"Lisa...? Is that you?" He asked, wide-eyed. He stared deeply into her eyes.

"H-how do you already know my name?" Lisa asked.

"Do you not recognize me?" Instead of looking confused, he now looked disappointed.

"Uh.." Lisa's complexion grew pale. "Am I supposed to know you..?"

"We were childhood friends..?"

Lisa still remained quiet.

"It's me, Francis."

His eyes widened in shock.

After ten long years of being separated, they had finally made their reunion.

Despite Roderich's annoyed expression, he escorted the two of them to their own table. He even gave them their own teaset.

"Now," he addressed the rest of the host club sternly. "Let's leave the two of them alone."

We all groaned and followed Roderich to a different room attached to the music room. He whipped out his laptop and started typing.

"So... You aren't going to eavesdrop on them..? I asked.

"Of course not. I have other things to do that are much more valuable." He continued to type, not even looking up at me. "If you're asking to seek permission from me to eavesdrop, go ahead."

The twins and I exchanged a devious smile.

"I don't want to invade on Fran-Fran's talk with Li-Li!" Feliciano said.

"Do you have to make a nickname for everyone?" I sighed.

"Yup!" He replied. "I even made one for you! From now on, I'll be calling you British Brat!"

My mouth hung open. "B-British Brat..?"

Due to how shocked I was, the twins had to drag me from my spot back to the music room. Then, we began to eavesdrop.

"It's been a while, Francis," Lisa began, twiddling her thumbs nervously. "I mean, I wasn't expecting you to be running a club like this with your friends."

"Friends," Alfred whispered to us while putting air quotes around it. Matthew and I snickered under our breaths.

"I admit, it's been quite a blur." Francis poured himself a cup of tea and sipped it. "Would you care for some? It's jasmine tea."

"Yes, please." She held her cup out to him as he fulfilled her request.

"I've been wondering.." Francis started, averting his gaze away from Lisa's. "Since it's been about ten years, should we just completely start over or pick up where we left off?"

The three of us raised eyebrows.

"Pick up where we left off? What does he mean by that?" I whispered.

"I guess we'll find out," Matthew whispered back.

"Look, Francis.." Lisa sighed. "I'd love to do the latter, but.." Lisa paused, staring at her teacup. "It's been so long. At first I adored and needed you, then I missed you, and then I didn't feel anything anymore."

"What're you saying?" Francis asked.

"What I'm saying is.." Lisa absentmindedly twirled a lock of her hair with her finger. "You really hurt me when you moved to Japan. You didn't even tell me."

"I'm sorry," Francis immediately gushed. "In the past, I was foolish.. But I swear I'll make it up to you. Starting tomorrow, I want you to be with me at all times after school. I want you to be there with me at the Host Club."

I exchanged wide-eyed glances with Matthew and Alfred.

Lisa nodded, her previous saddened expression gone. "I'd like that. Thank you."

"I'll make it up to you," Francis reiterated, laying his hand on top of Lisa's.

When their hands touched, Lisa's eyes immediately met Francis'. Her cheeks turned bright red. She retracted her hand, flustered.

"I.. I should be going now." Lisa waved a goodbye to Francis. "I enjoyed our time today, and I'm sure I'll be enjoying our time tomorrow."

As she rushed out of the room, the doors slammed shut. But as the famous saying goes, when one door closes, another one opens. The door leading to the room where Roderich, Feliciano, and Ludwig was swung open, slamming against the wall.

"What. The hell. Was that?" Roderich asked, fuming with anger.

"Holy shit," I whispered to Alfred and Matthew.

"I've never seen him this angry," Alfred said.

"I was showing a young lady courtesy. Isn't that what this club is about?" Francis cooly replied.

"No, that wasn't courtesy," Roderich said, his eyebrows furrowed. "That was trying to shamelessly impress someone that you have personal relationships with. When we made this club together we both agreed we wouldn't do this."

"Well, as of right now she's my client, not someone I have a personal relationship with," Francis purred. "Well, technically, I suppose she's both, but that doesn't matter."

"Oh my god," Roderich growled, rubbing his temples. "You're so infuriating!"

"Insult me all you want, but let me remind you who's King." Francis blew a kiss towards him while smiling.

Roderich groaned even louder. "I'm going to a much more quieter, less obnoxious place to work where a certain someone-" he glanced towards francis, "-won't be annoying us."

"And I'll be here," Francis said, "sticking to the roots and staying with the schedule."

"Who's with me?" They said in unison.

And thus, the five of us had to divide accordingly to the sides we were taking. Both Francis and Roderich casted their gazes among us.

"Well?" Roderich huffed.

"We're waiting," Francis said.

The first one to choose was Alfred, followed by Matthew.

"I'm willing to do any choices I can make if it means I get to be away from Francis," Alfred chuckled, walking next to Roderich.

"I'm with my brother." Matthew made the same decision Alfred made.

Roderich smirked while Francis looked more innocent and desperate.

"Fran-Fran was the one who welcomed me in this club!" Feliciano cried. He pranced over to Francis' side.

"I'm with Feliciano," Ludwig deadpanned as he went over with him.

That's when I realized I was going to be the one who was going to be the tiebreaker. I was the one who had to announce a 'winner.'

As all eyes met mine, I frantically tried to come up with an excuse.

"Guys, guys, look..." I threw up my hands in a defensive position. "We don't have to fight, right..?"

"Alice, please, come to your big brother! I love you!" Francis held out his arms, ready to embrace me.

"You don't want to be stuck with him, do you?" Roderich said.

"Can I just be neutral? I don't really care."

"Keep in mind that Francis is the one who's keeping you in this club against your own will. If you choose me, I might let you leave." Roderich's glasses gleamed.

"Keyword is might," I pointed out.

"Also keep in mind that Roderich was the one who made you sign the contract," Francis butted in.

"If you join us, I'll allow you to leave if you get a quota of 100 clients," Roderich bribed.

"If you join him, I'll raise your 'quota' to 1000! Or, better yet, I'll never let you leave!" Francis exasperatedly cried.

"Cmon, Allie," Alfred called. "Join us! You don't want to be with mean ol' pervert Francis, do ya?"

"I'm not a pervert!" Francis shouted. "I'm a romantic!"

"Hey, who're you calling Allie?!" I gave Alfred a look of disgust.

"Well, I was going to call you Artie at first when I still called you Arthur, but now that I think about it the equivalent for your real name would be Allie," Alfred explained.

"Alfred, stop provoking Alice! You don't want her to join Francis' side, do you?" Matthew urgently whispered.

"British Brat! Join us!" Feliciano pleaded. "We'll have lots of cake and sweets when you do!"

Ludwig simply nodded and didn't say anything.

Well, who should I choose? Francis or Roderich? I don't necessarily have a liking towards any of them, so I don't really care. But, I suppose I do find Roderich more bearable than Francis. Plus, maybe if I join Roderich's side, he'll be less upset?

"Okay, okay," I said, interrupting everyone's quarrels. "Normally, I'd go with Francis-"

Francis' face lit up in excitement and joy.

"-but today I'm going with Roderich," I finished.

Roderich smiled, but it didn't have any genuineness at all. Francis looked utterly devastated.

"You've made the right choice." Roderich approvingly nodded.

"That's-thats it!" Francis yelled. "Your quota is 1000 clients!"

"Wait, what?" My mouth hung open. "I thought you were joking! Roderich, can you revoke it?"

"No. I was lying when I said I could change your quota amount." He didn't show any remorse or mercy.

"God-fucking-damnit," I muttered under my breath. Roderich noticed my profanity and glared at me.

And then, our Host Club was divided into two opposing sides like the civil war. It seemed like it would remain this way until Roderich or Francis would give up and apologize to the other.

Unfortunately, I knew both of them wouldn't give up so easily.

"Let's go to a different place where we can work." Roderich turned around and headed for the exit.

I stared at the twins and they shrugged. We all followed after him, leaving the others behind.

* * *

 **Chapter Three, Part Two: The Rabbit, The Hare, and The Tortoise**

"Well, we're here. What is the 'work' we're exactly supposed to do?" I put my hands on my hips.

"Normally we'd clean up the Music room, but since we're not there you guys are off the hook. I just need to do all the work." Roderich seemingly pulled out his laptop from thin air.

The twins stared at me and I shrugged.

"So.. You wouldn't mind if the three of us went off to our own devices?" Alfred asked.

"No. Not at all." Roderich opened up his computer and started to type.

"Alright guys, let's go."

Suddenly, Matthew put his arm around my waist and Alfred put his arm around my shoulders, linking us. Before I could object, they dragged me to the hallways.

"What's this all about?" I sputtered.

"What? We're taking you on a walk," Alfred innocently said.

"Would you rather be with Roderich?" Matthew challenged.

"Okay, okay, fine. Just let go of me."

They released me from their grip. I lost my balance and tumbled to the ground.

"Geez, Allie. You're so clumsy." Alfred offered me his hand.

I took the offered hand and he helped me up. For whatever reason, his palms were somewhat sweaty. When I stood up again, I found myself in the middle of Matthew and Alfred.

For a few minutes, we walked in a silence. Me and Matthew were perfectly fine with this, but Alfred was desperately trying to converse.

"So, Allie," Alfred said, looking me in the eye. "What do you think about the whole thing between Roderich and Francis?"

"Honestly, I think it's just idiotic. They don't need to fight so much over one girl," came my response.

Judging by the looks on their faces, I should've said things less bluntly. Then, their expressions changed into something more sinister.

"They don't need to fight over one measly girl, eh?" Matthew began, grabbing my hand.

"What if that specified girl was as beautiful as you?" Alfred finished, grabbing my other hand.

"Bugger off," I growled as I removed my hands from theirs. "Seriously, I don't understand you two. You can't even talk to a friend for five minutes without flirting."

"Friend?" Alfred said, disappointed.

"Wouldn't it feel more natural if instead of calling us your friends, you called us lovers?" Matthew asked.

"See what I mean? You two are always flirting with girls, even if they are just your friends." I rolled my eyes.

"Oh no, no, no." Matthew chuckled.

"We don't flirt with every girl." Alfred smiled.

"Only you," the two of them whispered in both my ears.

I shivered as their voices tickled my ear. I pushed them away from me and started to walk a little faster.

"Do you act like hosts all the time? Flirting is your day job, idiots," I snapped, turning my gaze away from theirs."

They sighed in unison. Suddenly, their expressions changed, and they looked even more flirtatious.

"Of course we do," Alfred said charismatically.

"It's so that when we have finally caught and tamed your heart, we'll know how to treat it properly," Matthew explained while smirking.

"Caught and tamed my heart?" I snorted. "My heart isn't a wild animal."

"To us, it is." Matthew held his hand over his chest dramatically.

"A wild, unpredictable beast that lashes out at us whenever we get near," Alfred cried.

"You guys are acting stupid." I wondered how long this conversation was going to last.

"Call it stupid if you must-" Alfred began.

"-but we call it being in love," Matthew finished.

"You're in love with me?" I scoffed. "I wonder how many girls you tell that to."

"Nobody but you," Matthew muttered.

"We wouldn't throw around our emotions like that so easily," Alfred uttered.

"Because we love you," they whispered in unison.

"Of course you do," I said sarcastically. "Even if you truly did love me, why only me? Is there something about me that's so captivating to you?"

Alfred stuck out his bottom lip and started to pout and Matthew frowned.

"I don't understand you, Allie." Alfred looked disappointed.

"You don't even fall for our irresistible charms," Matthew sighed.

"It's not that hard to resist them." I shrugged. "I just don't care about your foolish host gimmicks. I'm not that shallow to just blindly accept your flattery."

"Y'know, Allie, you're different from the rest of 'em," Alfred patted me on the back, nearly knocking out all of the wind in my body.

"Yeah, we haven't met girl like you." Matthew smiled.

"Great, great. I don't care. What time is it? Are we allowed to leave yet?"

Alfred stared at his watch. "We could've left fifteen minutes ago, when we started taking our walk in the halls."

"Oh. Well, I'm going home." I turned around and instantly ran away from them.

"Alice! Wait up!" Matthew called after me.

"We'll walk you home!" Alfred yelled.

Upon hearing those words, I only ran faster.

Chapter Three, Part Three: And It Continues

When I arrived to the host club, tensions were at an all time high. Roderich and Francis were desperately trying to avoid and ignore eachother at all costs.

"Hello, Roderich." I glanced over towards Roderich who was still typing on his computer.

"Hello, Matthew and Alfred." I waved from a distance.

"Hello, Ludwig and Feliciano." I smiled at them.

"Hello, Fr-"

"Don't." Roderich still didn't look up at me.

Francis looked slightly hurt, but tried to play it off as nothing.

There was a slight knock on the door, and everyone perked their heads up towards the sound. All of us knew who it was.

"Well, that must be my guest," Francis purred. "Id prefer it if you guys went to the other room."

The door opened, and Lisa stepped through.

"No, no. Let them stay." She stared at all of us with a kind gaze.

Francis scowled at Roderich while Roderich simply smiled.

Francis quickly recomposed himself and gave Lisa a golden smile. "Of course. Will we be sitting in our usual spot?"

"Yes, that'd be nice." Lisa sat down in one of the salon chairs and smoothened her hair out.

Francis sat in the opposing chair from Lisa and poured himself some tea. "Would you like some? This time it's Earl Grey."

"Yes, thank you." Lisa giggled. "You're so gentlemanly nowadays! What made you have this change in heart?"

"What? Are you saying I wasn't like this when we were kids?" Francis chuckled.

"No, no, I'm saying that.." Lisa sighed. "You've changed a lot. Sure, you were somewhat of a flirt when we were kids. I wasn't expecting that you were going to.."

"Become the most handsomest man in the world?" Francis grinned.

Lisa laughed while I struggled to not vomit on the spot. Francis' flirting made me physically sick.

"Well, maybe.." Lisa said as her cheeks turned rosy.

Francis smiled a sickening smile as he sipped his tea.

"In a way, I miss our childhood." Lisa didn't even drink her tea. She just stared at her cup.

"Oh?" Francis raised an eyebrow.

"Well, don't you remember some of the things that happened?" Lisa asked, tapping her teacup. "Like, remember when Pierre almost got killed and cooked by some random hunter in the woods?"

I inched towards the twins. "Who's Pierre?"

They shrugged.

Francis laughed and nodded. "I'll never forget that day. Remember when we were having a bonfire and you almost got a third degree burn?"

"Oh, geez," Lisa giggled. "I was such a reckless kid. I was so careless."

"So was I," Francis said, reminiscing about his childhood.

There was a long silence between them, occasionally broken by Francis' sipping.

"I've really been enjoying my time with you," Lisa said, breaking the silence. "I just wish we had more time with eachother."

"If you're concerned about time, I can make some for you," Francis offered. "You can be one of my all-day clients. Would you like that?"

"No, that's not what I meant- actually, nevermind. I'd like that," Lisa stuttered.

"I'm glad to hear that." Francis smiled.

"I should be going now," Lisa said. "I'm glad I've been spending a lot of time with you. Goodbye."

And with that, she left.

"Say, Roderich," Francis addressed, giving a polite smile. "Make sure to write down in that little notebook of yours that Lisa will be my new all-say client, will you?"

"Of course," came Roderich's taught and dry reply.

"Thank you, dear." Francis continued to sip his tea.

"I'm going to another room, since this room seems to already have an unbearable pest." Roderich cleared his throat, cueing the twins and I to leave with him.

"Don't let the door hit you on the way out!" Francis called after us as we left the room.

Once the four of us went to the same room we went to yesterday, Roderich cleared his throat again.

"Is one of you going to address the elephant in the room, or am I going to be the one to bring it up?" Roderich asked.

"An elephant?!" Alfred gasped. His face lit up with joy as he frantically looked around the room. "Where? Where?"

"Alfred, you're truly a nitwit." Roderich didn't hesitate to insult him. "It's a figure of speech. Well, Matthew, Alice, are you going to say it?"

"You hate Francis?" I guessed.

"You hate Francis and Alfred?" Matthew guessed.

Roderich sighed. "No. I thought it was obvious that the girl likes Francis."

"Well, why wouldn't she like him! They're childhood friends," Alfred pointed out.

"I'm not talking about friendship," Roderich deadpanned. "Lisa wants something more than a friendship with Francis."

"Ohhhh," the three of us said together.

"I would've expected the ignorance from Alfred, and maybe Matthew, but I wasn't expecting Alice to be clueless." Roderich glared at me.

I shrugged in response.

"So what're we going to do about it?" Matthew asked.

"That's what I'm trying to figure out right now. Does anyone have a suggestion on what we should do?" This was a rare occurrence where Roderich displayed an emotion other than apathy.

"Well, maybe it's not all too bad that she likes him," Alfred suggested.

"No, it's bad," Roderich retorted. "We can't have personal affairs being mixed in with our work."

"Technically, Lisa wouldn't be what you classify as a 'personal affair' now that she's Francis' client," I pointed out.

Everyone remained silent for after I said this.

"Just.. Trust me." Roderich sighed and pushed up his glasses. "We can't allow him to play her on like this. It's obvious that he's just doing his job, but Lisa is going to get attached too quick."

"What if Francis also gets attached..?" Matthew asked.

There was another round of silence.

"Francis is.. idiotic, but I have faith in him. He wouldn't do something that.. I'm sure of it." The way Roderich's voice shook a little only proved how unsure he actually was.

"Well, like you said before, we need to intervene. How should we do that?" I asked.

And again, no one had anything to say.

"So.. We're sitting ducks. We can't do anything?" Matthew stuttered.

Suddenly, Roderich's began to gleam. He leaned over to Matthew, discreetly whispering in his ear.

Matthew's eyes widened and he snickered. He then leaned over to Alfred, presumably whispering the same thing Roderich told him.

Then, the three of them turned to look at me, all of them smiling a crooked smile.

"What?" I asked. "What's that look for?"

Roderich, ignoring me, turned to the twins. "What do you two think?"

"I think it could work," came Matthew's sinister reply.

"Perhaps," came Alfred's curt remark.

"..What? What could work..?" I didn't like what they were planning.

"Oh, Alice," Alfred cooed, clicking his tongue.

"To put it simply, you're not going to like this." Roderich's glasses shimmered once more.

Chapter Three, Part Four: Here We Go Again

I don't want to do this. I don't want to do this. Why, oh why, did Roderich set me up to this?!

I walked into the girl's bathroom and stared into the mirror. I almost gagged at the appearance the twins gave me. Similar to how I used to look, I had long, blonde pigtails. Instead of my contacts, my green eyes were hidden away by my glasses. I even had some makeup here and there.

Worst of all, I was wearing the girl's school uniform.

I buried my face into my hands.

Why are they making me do this? Why do they have to do this to me?!

Once my face retreated from my hands, I accidentally smeared some of the makeup I had on. I tried to fix it, but I realized I like it better this way.

Better yet, I'd rather not have it on at all. I splashes some water on my face and sighed. I looked at one of the clocks mounted on the wall. Only three minutes before all the clients enter the room.

Today, I was going to be a client.

To make matters worse, I was going to be Francis' client.

I'm such an idiot to actually agree to this. But, then again, Francis' and Lisa's relationship will jeopardize the Host Club. If they do get together and word gets out, the Host Club will turn to shambles. He makes seventy percent of the income. Without that seventy percent, what will be left?

Why am I even vouching for this damn club anyway?

Just do it, Alice. Just get it over with.

Only one minute left until they let them in. It's your time to shine.

There was already a huge group of girls crowded towards the doors. It was easy to slip in without anyone noticing.

I wonder if I could just give up on the plan? What if I just went home early? No, no. I can't do that. Roderich even cleared out my entire schedule today just so I could do this. I can't turn back now.

As I finished this final thought, the doors opened. All the girls rushed inside, but I slowly stepped in. My eyes scanned the room until they fell upon Francis and his client table.

I walked over, and I could hear Roderich's voice calling.

"Francis, remember," Roderich said, still refusing to look Francis in the eye. "You have a new client today."

"Perfect!" was his reply. "I love newcomers."

Little does he know. Little does he fucking know.

Once I reached his table, he was already engaged in conversation with his fellow clients. He didn't even notice me.

"Ah, you must be my new client." Francis wasn't looking at me, he only acknowledged my existence. "What's your name, my little lily?"

'My little lily?' The names Francis comes up for his girls are so ridiculously stupid it almost makes me laugh.

Without hesitation, I replied. "My name is Alice."

"Hm. Interesting. I have a friend named that. Regardless, I'm Francis Bonnefoy, charmed-"

His voice instantly caught in his throat when he saw me. I could tell he recognized me. I'm not surprised. It's not like the costume I had on was that convincing I was a complete different person.

His clients were confused towards his sudden and abrupt interrupting. He quacking recomposed himself and gave me a shaky smile.

"Why won't you take a seat, Alice?" He seemed to be putting far too much emphasis on my name.

I sat on a chaise lounge, seated next to Lisa. Francis glared at me and my seating choice.

"So, how was your day, Francis?" A brown-skinned and brown-haired girl asked.

"It's been a good day, but not as good as you, Michelle," Francis purred.

The other girls cooed and giggled, except for Lisa and I. We remained stone faced.

"Oh, Francis," Lisa coughed, a bit flustered. "So charismatic. So kind. So lovely. I'm starting to wonder if you throw around these sweet words to everyone."

"But I save the sweetest of words for you, Lisa," Francis whispered.

Lisa giggled softly, but then remained emotionless.

After many minutes of girls giggling and Francis flirting, I still sat there, as quiet as ever.

Lisa noticed how shy I was. "Alice is your name, right?"

I nodded. All eyes turned to me, including Francis'.

"Why are you so quiet?" She asked.

After hearing those words, I felt genuinely bad. I don't want to be the one who try's to drag Francis away from her. She's so nice and kind-hearted.

I was going to shrug in response, but I saw Roderich glaring at me. I knew I had to put up a show. So I did.

"I'm just.." I fumbled for words to say. "Just stunned by how handsome Francis is."

Everyone was quiet and shocked. While everyone was staring at me, I knew I had to go even further judging by Roderich's unsatisfied expression.

With one hand, I cupped the side of his face, making him stiffen.

People couldn't believe what I was doing. I had to keep going.

With my other hand, I brushed a few stray strands of his curly hair behind his ears. He was unmoving and unresponsive, but I could see a hint of a blush on his face.

All the other girls were speechless, especially Lisa. They had seen Francis act this way towards other girls, but they had never seen a girl act this way towards Francis.

Roderich stared at me, eyes narrowed. I know what he wants me to do. We even discussed this with me yesterday.

But I can't do this. I can't.

But I need to. I need to say this for the Club's sake, for Francis' sake, and for Roderich's sake.

What if he thinks I actually mean what I'm saying?

No, it doesn't matter.

Roderich is still staring at me.

I leaned in closer to Francis, to the point where my lips barely hovered next to his ear.

I inhaled a shaky breath. I am petrified. I need to say the next three words but I absolutely don't want to. I wonder if I'd just stay frozen in that spot forever. No, you have to compose yourself. You have to do this.

Just say the words.

With a barely audible voice, I whispered to him.

"I love you."

As soon as I said this to him, he turned bright red. I pulled away from him.

"Excuse us," he stuttered as he grabbed me by the wrist. He started dragging me out to the hallways.

While he dragged me, I quickly glanced towards Roderich. He gave me a thumbs up, while I gave him the 'okay' sign.

Once the two of us were out of the music room and in the hallways, he exploded.

"Alice.. What do you think you're doing?!" Francis boomed, trying to meet my eyes. I just stared down at the ground.

"I.. I realized.. I desired being close to you. I enjoyed being your little sister."

Lies. All lies. I'm horrible at lying. I gulped, hard.

"I don't understand what this is all about," Francis huffed.

"I wanted to confess. Ever since we met, I-"

"Stop. Just stop," Francis interrupted.

"What...?" was my mindless response.

Francis crouched down so we were at eye-level.

"How melodramatic," Francis chuckled. "Alice, you're so clueless when it comes to love."

"W-what..?" I croaked.

"Don't you think I know your intentions? I may be blind to most things, but not to love." Francis saw right through my act. "I know Roderich is setting you up to this."

"Roderich has nothing to do with this," I stuttered, fumbling my words. "I love you and only you."

"I don't understand what the point of this is all about," Francis sighed. "Are you trying to separate me from Lisa? Is that what this is all about?"

"No!" I shouted, tears coming to my eyes. Now I wasn't even sure if these tears were genuine or not. "I-I love-"

"Alice, you can't trick me." Francis patted my head. "I know everything about love, and if anything, I certainly know you don't love me."

"Okay, fine," I huffed, the tears instantly evaporating. "But why did you blush when I did all that stuff?"

"What can I say? You took me by surprise. I didn't expect anyone, especially you from all people, to do something like that. It's silly to think you could've fooled my heart."

"B-but I-" I tried to speak again, but Francis was keen on ignoring me.

"Roderich might think this whole scheme was a good idea, but trust me, it's only making things worse. Don't come between Lisa and I. Do you understand, Alice?"

I gulped once again.

With a strangled voice, I replied. "Yes."

And with that, he left me, returning to the room. After a while of standing in my place, I took off the silly wig, took off my girl uniform with my regular uniform underneath, and sighed.

After all of that, I went back inside.

I went back to my table that'd usually have my clients with, but I remembered that I had nothing to do now. My entire day was focused on the task I failed at.

When Roderich met my gaze, he understood what happened.

Watching the others work, I sat in my chair and sulked.

I don't know why I ever thought this could've worked. I'm such an idiot. I don't know why I even participated in this. If Francis doesn't hate me already, he does now. I'm such a goddamn idiot. Why did I even do this?

As I was rethinking a lot of my decisions, I overheard some of the conversations coming from Francis' table. It looks like there's only Lisa and Francis there.

"Say, where did Alice go?" Lisa asked.

"Oh, you mustn't worry about her." Francis glanced at me for a few moments, but then turned his gaze back to Lisa again.

"Good. I was getting worried that you may like her more than me."

"Never in a million years, Lisa."

The two of them laughed. Me and Roderich met eyes, both of us scowling.

"Good, good," Lisa said more lightheartedly. "You're mine and mine only."

"Until the end," Francis promised as their hands joined.

Unconsciously, Francis leaned closer towards Lisa. Lisa mirrored this action. Slowly but surely, they inched closer towards each other.

No.

In alarm, I looked towards Roderich, but his gaze was fixating on them.

Francis brought his hand up to her face. They leaned in, their lips only inches-

Everyone stopped what they were doing when they heard that horrible, cracking and snapping sound. Francis and Lisa pulled away from each other. The entire room went silent, searching for the source of the sound.

Roderich was sitting in his seat with a broken pencil in his hands. Everyone was staring at him for his outburst.

No one had ever seen him this angry. Ever.

He sensed that everyone was watched him and he slowly stood up.

"I'm sorry," he said, addressing the entire room. "I'll be going out in the hall to cool off."

He took off for the door. I decided to go after him.

Once we were in the hallways together and we were alone, he took off his glasses and rubbed the bridge of his nose.

"Roderich?!" I snapped. "What the hell was that?!"

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry," he repeated over and over again, now vigorously rubbing his temples.

"I don't know why you're so shaken up about this.." I sighed.

Once he had his glasses on again, a few lightbulbs went off in my head, and I finally understood what was happening.

"Do you... like Francis?" I blurted.

He looked even more confused. "What? Of course not. That's preposterous."

Well, maybe I didn't understand what was happening.

"Then what's going on between you and Francis?!" I yelled, throwing my arms out. "What's so important about this?!"

"I don't want Francis to get attached to Lisa because she's moving back to France soon," Roderich explained.

"Well then why don't you tell him that?" I exasperatedly cried.

"I fear it's already too late. He likes her too much," Roderich said.

"Well then why didn't you tell him earlier?!" I asked, making it seem like it was the easiest course of action to take.

"It's not my business," Roderich simply responded. "Well, that's what I thought at first. Now that things have spiraled out of control, my opinion has changed."

"No shit, Sherlock." I groaned. "Fine. If you're not telling him, I'll tell him on my own." I turned away from him, starting to open the music room doors.

"I've told you too much," Roderich muttered under his breath. "Don't confront him. It'll only make things worse."

"I don't give a damn," I snapped. "I don't care if you think it's a bad idea, cause I'll do it anyway."

I opened the doors to find Lisa and Francis inside.

"Francis. We need to talk. Right now." I glared at him.

"I'm not going anywhere," he said.

"Fine. Hear me out, then."

I caught Lisa whispering something to Francis. Probably about how rude I am. I couldn't care less at this point. They're both so foolish.

"You can't be with Lisa."

Francis snorted. "Why not? Is it because you.." He mouthed the words 'love me?'

"No. Fucking hell, no." Lisa looked appalled by my profanity. "Lisa's moving to France, you idiot."

"Another stratagem to separate Lisa and I?" Francis scoffed. "Nice try, but like before, you've failed."

"Oh for god's sakes, listen to me for once, will you?" I snapped. "I'm not trying to get between you and your goddamn sweetheart. She's moving to France, and when she does, she'll tear your heart apart."

"You're so bad at lying, Arthur," was his reply.

"I'm not lying! Bloody hell, you're so aggravating!" I pointed to Lisa. "Well?! Why don't you tell him the truth, huh?!"

Lisa looked stunned, but simply shook her head.

"See? She's not moving to France, silly one," Francis reassured, smiling at me. "Now, why don't you leave us alone?"

I leaned in towards Francis until our noses were only inches apart. "Fine! I will! I hope you're happy with losing both of us, then!"

He only smiled his shit-eating grin at me.

I turned around, headed for the door, left the room, and slammed the door shut.

Francis' POV:

When she slammed the door, I felt nothing but amusement. The lengths Alice will go to keep us apart. It's so cute when she gets angry.

"Now, where were we?" I asked, putting my arm around Lisa.

"F-Francis.." She immediately crawled away from me.

I raised an eyebrow. "What is it? Did Arthur upset you?"

"N-no. He's right." She looked up at me with wide eyes.

I almost couldn't believe it.

"Ex-excuse me?" A nervous laugh came out.

"I'm.. I'm moving to France in a week."

"Oh." The word slipped out of my mouth.

"I'm sorry. I meant to tell you, but I just didn't have the heart to do it.."

Alice.

Her name was the only tangible thought that I could process.

Alice, Alice, Alice.

Oh god, she must be so angry at me right now. Oh my god, what have I done?

I shook my head.

Don't worry about her. She's fine. She's fine on her own. She doesn't need you.

But the thoughts kept nagging me. They were persistent.

Apologize to her, damnit. Do it.

I want to go and find her, but I can't leave Lisa here, can I?

It doesn't matter! Alice is your top priority now!

"Francis..? Are you okay?" Lisa asked. I was getting paler by the second.

I stood up from the couch, heading for the door.

"Francis? Where are you going?" Lisa asked again.

"I... Stay here. I'll be back."

Once I entered the hallway, I scanned the corridors for her. I searched for the glint of her blonde hair, or swaying of her brown bookbag. I need to find her right now. Where the hell is she?!

There was a fork in the hallway and I turned right. After a little bit of more walking, I grew restless and inpatient.

This school is too big. There's no way I'm going to be able to locate her.

As I was about to turn back, I heard incoherent mutterings and curses from further down the hall. I've never heard anyone with such a colorful vocabulary. It has to be her.

I saw her shadowed figure walking along as if nothing had happened. My lips parted to shout her name, but she turned around and saw me. As soon as she knew of my presence, she took off, and ran the other way.

And, of course, I followed after Three, Part Five: Bittersweet Frenemies

Alice's POV

I guess it's time for me to be heading home, isn't it?

I still can't get used to the fact that Francis doesn't think I'm telling the truth. Well, y'know what I say in response to that? He can go fuck off with Lisa. I'm so done at this point I don't even want to see his annoying little face anymore.

There has to be a way I can leave this club for good. I don't want to get 1000 clients. There should be another way of getting out of this club.

I sighed as I stared out the window.

My thoughts were interrupted when I heard the thundering footsteps behind me. They were coming towards my way.

Don't let it be who I think it is.

After one short glance behind me, my suspicions were confirmed. It's Francis.

Immediately, I started to run.

"Stop! I need to talk to you!" Francis shouted.

"Leave me alone!" I yelled back at him as I ran down the hallway.

As I neared the end of the corridor, there was a sharp corner. I turned left and entered another hallway full of classrooms. There were a few students scattered here and there, quietly talking amongst themselves. A perfect hiding spot.

I ran into an empty classroom, leaving the door open to make sure it didn't look suspicious. I leaned against the wall, close to the door but not in the doorway.

I heard Francis entering the hall and his footsteps ceased.

"Excuse me," Francis said. "Did you see a blonde-haired boy with bushy eyebrows running through here?"

He must be asking one of the students for help. This might be my downfall.

I crossed my fingers.

Please, please, please, don't let them know..

"Sorry, no," the student replied.

I exhaled a long, relieved breath.

"Thanks anyway."

I then heard his footsteps moving away from. He must be going down the hallway. Oh thank god.

Once he was out of sight and I didn't hear him anymore, I left the classroom and backtracked to the Music Room. I then went in the opposite direction I took before and headed for the exit.

Man, that was easy. I'm glad I was able to escape him.

After some walking, I found myself in the foyer. The doors were right ahead of me. No Francis, no Roderich, no twins, no host club here to bother me.

"Arthur Kirkland!"

My eyes instantly perked up. I turned around and searched for whoever said my name. Amidst the students and the architecture, I saw Francis.

Damnit.

He was heading straight for me.

Instinctively, I started running. I didn't know where I was going, but I just knew I couldn't be confronted by him.

To the left of me, I saw a corridor leading to a concourse. I could see large crowds of students inside. Perfect.

I made a beeline towards my destination and Francis knew I was at the upper hand. I hope I lose him in the crowds of people.

I pushed and passed through groups and groups of people, not caring about their wellbeing or how clumsy I was. I just need to get away from him.

As I was nearing the end of the large wave of people, Francis did the last thing he could do.

"Arthur!"

For a brief moment, I almost stopped dead in my tracks and everyone stared at him.

I was about to regain myself and start to run again when I felt his hand on my shoulder.

"I'm sorry!" He boomed, his voice filling up the entire room.

I froze, and all the people spotlighted their gazes on us. Everyone was watching.

I seized the collar of Francis' blazer and pulled him in so I could whisper in his ear.

"Francis! What the hell do you think you're doing?!" I half-whispered and half-exclaimed.

"I came to apologize," was his breathless excuse.

"Not in front of all of these people!" As I turned to look around us, most people didn't care anymore. They averted their gaze and carried on with their life. "You bloody idiot. Come with me."

Still grabbing him by the front of his jacket, I pulled him to an unlocked janitor's closet.

I hastily closed the door, making sure no one would be able to see us.

In retrospect, I shouldn't have chosen a janitor's closet. Since there was limited space, the two of us had to snuggle up against each other. It was very uncomfortable and awkward to say the least.

"So, you came looking for me to apologize?" I asked.

He nodded.

"Get on with it, then." I turned my head away from his. I didn't dare look into his eyes after what happened.

"I'm sorry for doubting you. I'm sorry I thought you were lying, and I'm sorry I had to make such a scene in the hallway. There, are you happy?" Francis huffed, becoming inpatient with my short temper.

Still averting my gaze from him, I felt my cheeks heating up. "I.. I'm sorry for doing that weird scheme that included me.. y'know.."

"You don't have to say anymore, Alice," Francis interrupted.

There was a long, pregnant pause.

Suddenly, Francis turned around to look at me.

"Hug?" He asked, holding up his arms.

"Hug." I smiled.

And we embraced in that confined space.

Chapter Three, Part Six: Not an Ending, but a Beginning

Before we all knew it, a week had passed and it was time for Lisa to leave. In the short time that she had spent in Japan, the only friends she made were us.

As her car pulled up towards the entrance of the campus, all of us said our goodbyes.

"Goodbye," Roderich deadpanned. Lisa smiled coldly at him.

"Bring us some trinkets back, pretty please?" Feliciano pleaded. She giggled and nodded.

"Good luck," Ludwig said. She seemed eager to move on.

"We'll see you soon," Alfred started.

"Don't miss us too much," Matthew finished.

She rolled her eyes at them.

When she finally walked up to me, I could tell she was going to think I was going to swear at her.

"I'm sorry for all the drama. And my cursing. Have fun in France." I gave a small, weak smile. She looked relieved.

"I'd like to make my goodbye private," Francis announced as she came up to him. She seemed confused, but nodded anyways.

The two of them went to a nearby gazebo where none of us could hear them.

"What do you think the two of them are talking about?" I asked the rest of the Host Club.

"Frankly, I don't know." Matthew shrugged.

"And I don't care," Alfred added.

"We're going home," the two of them said in unison.

"Well, whatever they're talking about, I hope they have fun!" Feliciano gleefully exclaimed.

"Hm," Ludwig stoically remarked.

"I don't think it matters anymore," Roderich said.

As all of them left, I decided to stick around and spy on them. Why not? This seemed like a perfect opportunity.

I hid behind a tree that was close enough to let me see them, but not enough to hear them. It looked like they were having a deep conversation.

Francis whispered something in Lisa's ear and she burst out in tears and smiled. She started hugging him tightly and kissed his cheeks over and over again. Francis simply laughed and smiled.

What a bunch of weirdos.


	4. IMPORTANT UPDATE!

Unfortunately, I've run out of motivation to continue this story. Mostly because of how poorly written this is. However, I promise to rewrite this story since I still like the idea of it, so stay tuned for that. Sorry for the inconvenience. I'll delete this story once I have the new and improved version up. It'll be up soon! Once again, I apologize for this.


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